Hello From the Other Side
by Mumofpicklegirls
Summary: When you've reached rock bottom the only way is up, but why were you there in the first place and will you ever be happy again? Rated M for a reason, guys...
1. Chapter 1

**Hi Guys**

**I'm finally back. I have a couple of rip roarers I've been penning for a while for you. This first story is almost completely finished but because RL is so very manic (kids, hubby, work, remodelling of bungalow to house, yada, yada, yada…) don't expect me to be able to update too often – probably once a week going forward (said she, with her fingers crossed)**

**For those of you who know me, it's angst, angst, angst all the way (until it isn't, obviously **** ) and for those who don't - welcome on board…**

**Cheers**

**Sarah xx**

**PS R&R's make me post faster, just sayin'**

o0o0o0o0o

_Hello from the Other side – by Adele_

_Hello, it's me  
I was wondering if after all these years you'd like to meet  
To go over everything  
They say that time's supposed to heal ya  
But I ain't done much healing  
Hello, can you hear me?  
I'm in California dreaming about who we used to be  
When we were younger and free  
I've forgotten how it felt  
Before the world fell at our feet_

_There's such a difference between us  
And a million miles_

_Hello from the other side  
I must have called a thousand times  
To tell you I'm sorry for everything that I've done  
But when I call you never seem to be home  
Hello from the outside  
At least I can say that I've tried  
To tell you I'm sorry for breaking your heart  
But it don't matter, it clearly doesn't tear you apart  
Anymore_

_Hello, how are you?  
It's so typical of me to talk about myself, I'm sorry  
I hope that you're well  
Did you ever make it out of that town  
Where nothing ever happened?_

_It's no secret that the both of us  
Are running out of time_

_So hello from the other side (other side)  
I must have called a thousand times (thousand times)  
To tell you I'm sorry for everything that I've done  
But when I call you never seem to be home  
Hello from the outside (outside)  
At least I can say that I've tried (I've tried)  
To tell you I'm sorry for breaking your heart  
But it don't matter, it clearly doesn't tear you apart  
Anymore  
_

Curled up on her well worn sectional, deep in the shadows that only the end of a very long day brings, the curly haired, blue eyed woman pulled her cuddly sock clad feet up and hugged her tired and faded sweat pant covered legs. A small side lamp on the battered table at the end of the sofa haloed her profile as she started to press the keys on her cell phone. Halfway through she stopped and stared at the number that was starting to build on the display. Could she do it?

How could she not. But it had been so long.

Too long.

Beyond the point of no return too long.

She deleted the numbers. Slowly. One by one. Caressing the keys as she watched the digits disappear from the display before gently laying the phone on the cushion beside her as if it were the most precious thing in the world and perhaps, just perhaps at that moment…

It was.

Pulling herself into a tiny ball her heart broke for the millionth time. Tears fell not for the first time, as she gave herself over to her pain and sobbed quietly.

For the questions that would forever go answered.

For the accusations that had torn her apart.

For the future she'd lost.

For the family who'd been left behind.

For the hurt that just refused to go away.

Just as her almost silent sobs subsided, the pitter patter of little, perfect feet and the feeling of a tiny warm body draping itself over her forced her to pull herself together.

"Mommy?" The child questioned as it squeezed her as tightly as its little arms would let it.

A tiny tug and the little scrap of humanity that loved her unconditionally was enveloped in her arms. Testament that at some level, somewhere, she'd once done something right.

"You're supposed to be asleep, Gorgeous Girl." She chastised half heartedly.

"Mhmm." Came the sleepy reply, "Bu-bu tol me to gif you a hug."

They cuddled for a while longer and Steph felt the moment when her two and a half year old daughter began to drift off "What would I ever do without you, hmm?" she asked softly as she smoothed her hands repetitively across the dark tangles that fluffed round her daughter's cherubic face.

Charlie snuggled in deeper and let out a soft contented sigh "lub you, Mama." She breathed out as she drifted off to the land of milky dreams.

o0o0o0o0o


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi guys**

**Wow, I've been blown away by your reviews, especially welcoming me back (I can only apologise for it having taken me soooo long!) so thank you! Glad you are all looking forward to the next chapter. Maybe you'll get a bit more history, but those who know me know I'll only give you snippets at a time and like I said, angst all the way…**

o0o0o0o0o

Steph sat on the couch holding her daughter until her own eyes started to droop, knowing that if she didn't move soon she'd fall asleep where she was. Knowing what usually happened after she'd thought too long and hard about the events just over three years ago, she knew that if she didn't move while she still could, her daughter might finally find out what a mess she really was. Standing quickly she headed off towards her daughter's room.

Since leaving the refuge for battered women she'd stumbled into by chance in Wyoming and having them help her put together a new life, she'd coped pretty much on her own. With their guidance and support, she'd changed her name, got new papers, adopted a new back story and left her old life behind.

They'd provided counselling which helped and during the day she'd somehow manage to fake normality - whatever _that_ was - and put on a brave face as she began to travel through life solo but the nights? Yeah, the nights were a different story and in the early days when she'd lived on site, if any of the counsellors and support staff heard her pathetic cries they didn't comment on them.

In the early days as she worked her way through morning sickness that lasted all day and gestational diabetes that took her away from her favourite food groups and left her ironically, with bark, twigs and herbal tea instead, she'd focused every ounce of positive energy she still possessed on keeping her baby healthy. Unfortunately, it meant that by the end of each and every day she was completely spent from making sure that no-one could see the clouds on the horizon that turned into the inevitable lightning storms at night once she let her guard down.

Although much less dramatic and far less frequent than they had been, her nightmares still left her shaky, sweating and usually in tears. Because Charlie had grown inside her womb, lived in a cot at her side and probably heard the same noises every night, they did not seem to disturb her. In fact a herd of elephants could stampede through her room and her daughter would remain none the wiser. Steph thanked her lucky stars that her daughter was not like her father and could sleep like the dead, oblivious to the shouting and cries of despair she knew spewed from her mouth when the nightmares were at their worst.

Kissing her daughter's dark, dark curls before running the backs of her fingers over her latte coloured, downy cheeks she smiled. "I love you so so much, beautiful child." She whispered as she placed her in her cot and backed out of Charlie's faded and jaded room. A room not fit for the princess that slept within its walls.

o0o0o0o0o

"You know one day your face is going to stick like that." Lester said, teasingly, as he looked at the blank face his cousin was giving him. "Actually, I think I'm too late…" he added pretending to contemplate his statement before winking with a smirk.

Ranger just rolled his eyes, mentally of course, as he gave his cousin a long look. A look that had shrivelled the balls of many men bigger and uglier than Les but as usual it had no effect sadly, as Lester just raised an eyebrow and widened his grin in reply. He turned to focus back on the house they were watching through the rain drops that littered the Cayenne's wind shield as he fought to get his emotions under control and replace the scowl he was currently wearing with his trademark blank face.

Minutes passed and Les began to fidget again. He was bored and a bored Santos was a dangerous and unpredictable beast. Things tended to blow up, clothes tended to disappear and cousins tended to be harassed…

"Stop... it!" Ranger admonished without any real force as he folded his arms - the first real movement he'd made in the last two hours. "Our replacements will be here in… 8 minutes." He added blandly after glancing at the clock on the dashboard.

He too was bored, but unlike Les and thanks to two years of counselling, a bored Ranger was a reflective thing and his reflections always led him back to…"Perp. 6 O'clock" he stated softly but with command in his voice as a figure crept out of the shadows and towards the huge, multi faceted monstrosity of a building that masqueraded as a house that they'd been watching for the last nearly three hours.

"10-4!" Les acknowledged happily like an over excited puppy. He'd had enough. He wanted to grab the guy a-sap and return him to Miami PD so that he could go wind down, preferably with his chosen piece-of-skirt de jour. The fact that he hadn't actually _been_ anywhere yet to go find her was irrelevant. Five minutes of amped up Santos charm in the nearest night club and his future target would be eagerly dropping her panties and/or sucking his dick in no time flat. His cargo pants tightened as said part of his anatomy twitched in anticipation.

Ranger rolled his eyes for real this time as he silently left the warmth of the vehicle and moved like smoke towards his target.

"Hey! Wait for me." Les grumbled petulantly under his breath as he looked at his older cousin's disappearing back before he too noiselessly and stealthily exited the Porsche. Instead of going to the front door though, he headed for the rear of the property, hoping their target would come out the back way. He hoped the dumb fuck would try to evade capture because he really needed to punch something in payment for the numb ass he now had. "rain in December… in Miami?!" his last thoughts as they set about bringing their million dollar skip back into the system.

o0o0o0o0o

Another disturbed night filled with... intense images... crawled past and Steph finally rolled out of her saggy old bed at 6.30 and into the bathroom. Hopping into the shower as fast as she could so she could wash away the pain and sadness, she made sure that with every movement of her hands over her body she temporarily sealed the wounds that still threatened to topple her. She hoped one day she'd wake feeling refreshed and eager to begin her day, but instead of moving forward, each day seemed to be getting harder as her life went from bad to worse.

A year ago she'd made the foolhardy decision to move towards Texas, she wasn't sure why, but some _thing_ was compelling her to go there. After many discussions with the refuge's outreach team and with their love, support and good wishes she'd left the few friends she'd made, put everything she owned in two suitcases, bundled Charlie into a greyhound bus and set off towards Dallas. She hoped that she wasn't wasting her meagre savings on a wild goose chase, but Texas was a good place to live and if things got any worse, at least there were pockets of humanity where she'd be able to find cheap rent and casual jobs.

Perfect for someone who never wanted to be found. Sometimes she wondered what would happen if she bumped into anyone from her old life again. Part of her hoped they would forgive her and part of her expected them to throw Chico in her face and tell her to go to hell. Neither outcome she deserved, she thought sadly.

After a very uneventful journey they arrived at the main bus terminal, disembarked and headed off towards the small hotel that had accepted her application for a job.

The owner, a single man in his fifties, welcomed them warmly and for the first couple of months things seemed to be going well. The job came with a tiny apartment in the attic but it was enough and the money she'd received each week paid the bills and give her enough left over to start saving again. There was a small day care centre nearby that seemed perfect and was reasonably priced and at last she thought she was moving forward.

Charlie seemed happy, the large, matronly cook in the hotel often gave her leftovers so she didn't need to spend so much on her groceries and for the first time in a long time she thought she might just make it after all.

That was until the day her boss tried to rape her.

Luckily her killer knee had been unleashed and she managed to subdue him and flee. Quickly stuffing her things into her two suitcases, she hauled ass over the to daycare centre where she picked up Charlie and they fled into the night.

The next job she got didn't pay as well and the one after that was a dud too but the job she currently held was... well it was ok.

Unfortunately though yesterday a young guy had tried to steal from the till and she'd caught him red handed. He'd blamed her and it was his word against hers. With no witnesses...

Thing was he was a nobody with a somebody father and she knew immediately that she was in trouble.

Yet despite everything that had happened she still felt blessed. So what if they lived in a dump? The apartment she'd had in Trenton was filled with death cooties, unwanted guests and the oldest most god-awful bathroom that had ever been installed so after that, anything else seemed, well, almost ok.

So what if the fact that she had no references nor employment history since her reinvention meant she could only manage to rent a tiny two bed apartment in a very rundown part of town at least it was clean. Well, ish - if you discounted the appalling state of the sealant round the bath and the paint choice. And it came furnished.

But the reason she'd felt blessed was that through it all, Charlie was a happy child, not too trusting of strangers thankfully, but seemingly oblivious to their ever changing downwardly spiralling situation. Adapting with ease as if everything was a Disney inspired movie.

Her daughter had complete faith in her and loved her fiercely and unconditionally and seemed to treat all their setbacks as one big adventure in which the impoverished heroine of the story who was down on her luck (Mommy) would scoop up the young Princess (Charlie) and they'd go live in the woods eating berries and befriending the woodland creatures as they waited for Prince Charming (Daddy) to finally arrive on his big black horse (white was too silly, obviously, Charlie had explained with an eye roll that had made Steph extremely proud) and save them from the nasty dragon and they would all go home and live happily ever after.

If only reality was like that, she often groused unhappily, her heart clenching painfully, longingly at the idea of Ranger in their life again. Also, perhaps she needed to change her daughter's viewing habits, she added wryly as an afterthought.

Returning to reality and ignoring the mould encrusted grout, sweaty walls she quickly washed herself under the pathetic spray as she mentally listed what she had to do today: laundry, placate the boss, stay strong, pay a couple of bills, drink some coffee, and drop her daughter at Mrs Bestler's equivalent's apartment down the hall, but not necessarily in that order. Stumbling out of the unappetising space, she shoved her head round the door of Charlie's room, towelling her hair quickly as she gazed at her sleeping daughter, so innocent and wonderous.

"Time to get up sleepyhead." She finally said with a smile as she tugged Bunbun out of her daughter's arms.

Bunbun was a hard to miss, big, fat, squishy and floppy pale cream rabbit with long legs and ears, button eyes and a lopsided smile that one of the Mom's in the refuge had made for her. Once he was removed from her arms Charlie tended to stir.

"Don't wanna." Came the sleepy reply.

"Well then, Bunbun is going to help me make breakfast, so…"

"I mup." Came the groggy response as Charlie fought to open her eyes and yawned loudly. "Uh Oh! I forgetted to do that one last night." She stated with a bright and goofy grin as she came to with the speed that only a nosey young child (or her father) could muster.

Steph's heart ached as her daughter's face morphed into that of Ranger when he used to light up her world with his 200 watt smiles. They are so alike, she mused sadly. "But he kicked you out!" a little voice in her head chastised waspishly as the devil on her shoulder crossed her arms and tapped her feet giving her a knowing look. "Dumped you like a sack of shit after Chico…" it added sourly.

Ignoring the direction her mental musings were going and shaking her head to clear the angst, she turned to her daughter "What do you and Bunbun want, sweetie? Toast or cereal?"

"Seerall pease." Charlie said as she clambered off her bed and dashed off to use her potty like a big girl.

o0o0o0o0o

Tank rolled his eyes and stifled a growl as talented fingers travelled down his torso and to join the mouth that was currently providing so much pleasure.

"Gonna cum, Lu!" he groaned out as his orgasm erupted. The feeling travelled outwards from his belly, through his balls and into every part of his body including his clenched fists and curled up toes as Lula finally allowed him to fall over the edge.

"Christ!" he finally managed to say as he looked up at a very smug Talullah Dupart. He was completely boneless right now and all he could do was smile widely and stare past her knowing grin at the smooth ceiling of their large master bedroom.

"Not Christ, just _fiancée_ my big hunk of love!" She cooed before settling into his side from where she could stroke his chest.

As Tank's breathing returned to normal he smiled into his soon to be wife's currently ginger/blond hair, kissing her soft tight ringlet curls periodically as he toyed lazily with the simply set, large, flawless, blue white diamond encased in platinum that encircled her ring finger.

Two weeks. Two weeks from now they'd be on their honeymoon. Tank had booked a three week break that would take them to New Orleans for ten days then on to Cozumel in Mexico for the rest of their vacation. Neither could wait.

Tank because he wanted to show her where his family originally came from and the jazz music that filled his soul and Lula because she was fed up with Ranger's constantly shitty mood whenever he was in the building.

Tank was a different man from the one she'd first met and the last three years had been particularly hard on him as he struggled to bring Ranger back from the brink. It was if Steph had died, not just disappeared and they watched their friend go through the classic stages of bereavement: denial, anger, bargaining, depression but never acceptance and Tank had stoically borne the brunt of it all.

When Stephanie left it was as if a light had gone out at Rangeman as the men dealt with the gap she left behind. Lula didn't know the ins and outs of the split but guessed Tank knew more than he let on, but what she did know that it had been nasty and devastating and every man that worked in the building had their own take on the events. Some said Ranger had got what he deserved – that White Girl had been too good for him. Others said it had been inevitable, she was too stubborn and stupid and Ranger had been a fool to put up with her blatant disregard for her own safety, after what had happened with Chico. Others were just sad as they looked at her empty desk or the barely discernable slump of their boss' shoulders. What no-one could understand was why Jean-Ellen Burrows suddenly started showing up in the building and some even wondered if she was yet another third wheel while others wondered whether she was trying to help find Steph. Either way, the Trenton office was a mess and whatever the reason, Rangeman never quite recovered.

As a last ditch effort to bring him out of his stupor, Tank had suggested a move to Miami and Ranger had reluctantly agreed.

Then six months after _she'd_ gone, out of the blue Ranger got a phone call and he'd just gotten angry.

Really angry.

He'd thrown the handset back at its cradle on his desk watching as it glanced off the metal stand and onto the floor where he'd proceeded to deliberately grind it to a mass of metal, plastic and wires under his boots. Then he'd marched purposefully into the gym and quietly and with deadly intent, he'd ordered everyone out.

The men in the gym need didn't need to be asked a second time and ran like rats deserting and sinking ship. Once the place was cleared he'd stood and screamed like a banshee before throwing things round as if the equipment weighed nothing.

It was as if a tornado had landed.

He smashed up the mirrored walls, destroyed the benching equipment, wrestled the punch bag off its bolts in the ceiling and threw the dumbbells in every direction. By the time he'd finished not one thing in the large room was untouched even the mats were thrown in all directions. Then he'd just upped and left leaving a shocked and stunned team to deal with the aftermath as he disappeared for nearly a week. On his return he locked himself up on 7 and drank himself into oblivion for another week. Then as suddenly as the storm happened it was over.

But Ranger was never the same again and the name Babe became a faint and forbidden echo in the breeze.

When Ranger was in the wind, which he seemed to be almost constantly these days, Rangeman Miami was a smoothly run, efficient and good place to work. Once he returned, his sour disposition pushed morale through the floor and into the basement. Trenton had breathed a sigh of relief when he'd relocated and Boston girded their loins and battened down the hatches to ride out Storm Carlos whenever he descended on them.

Nothing could bring him out of his dark thoughts. Not a hint of redemption when the core team took him to the mats for an attitude adjustment. Nor the weeks of therapy that they then forced him to attend and the months he'd continued of his own volition. They all knew it would take a miracle to bring back the man who'd seemingly dipped out of life three years ago following _that night_.

Running her hands down his torso, Lula sighed sadly. "Penny for them" Tank prompted as he grasped then gently squeezed her hand.

"Just can't wait to have you all to myself, is all." She said quietly. They both knew she'd been thinking about Little Girl moments before but… three weeks with no phone calls and her new husband all to herself. Heaven, Lula thought as she sighed happily.

Tank rolled them both so that he was on top and soundly kissed his woman. _His_ woman. That sounded good! Who would have thought five years ago they'd be where they were now – he'd been lonely and closed off when Ranger admitted his feelings for Bomber. It had looked like they'd had a golden future, no cop to muddy the waters, Helen Plum had warmed to their relationship and everything was rosy. Now, ironically, he was the happy one, Little Girl was stripped from their lives and Ranger, well let's just say Ranger was a fucking mess and truth be told, Tank was surprised he'd never had a call from their handler saying he'd not made it to the end of a mission.

Tank and Lula met up again when he'd been back in Trenton one time and they realised they were good for and to each other. They both had insecurities and a less than stella relationship history and although they didn't take quite as long to admit their feelings (no one could take as long as Steph and Ranger, to be fair) they finally realised they were a good match and stayed in contact and began to talk, in spite of the distance.

Eventually they decided to take things further. They'd gone out, gotten drunk, gotten laid and never looked back. At least one good thing had come out of the shit fest.

It was just a shame the ripples never died down completely and Tank knew that Ranger would never recover from the FUBAR situation he'd created. He just hoped Little Girl had moved on and was in a better place than his BFF.

o0o0o0o0o

**I'm currently listening to That Next Place by Thomas Newman as I finish double checking this chapter. It's the soundtrack from Meet Joe Black (my favourite movie, ever. Where Death gets his heartbroken. It's a bit slow but a fabulous story with Brad Pitt and Anthony Hopkins… what's not to like, hmm?!) and my heart is breaking at its sadness yet stony resolve bit like this story… **

**Sad music that has an underlying sense of purpose and hope fills me with joy, makes my heart soar and urges me to put finger to keyboard so it's a win, win.**

**Really!**

**R&R guys, you know you want to xxx**


	3. Chapter 3

**Wow guys, you're really invested in my story and I've been blown away by your comments! If I haven't had time to reply and say thanks in person, please accept my apologies, bit busy here…**

**Anyway, here we go again, with more of the puzzle pieces being slotted into place…**

**o0o0o0o0o**

"I'm sorry, Stephanie. I'm going to have to let you go." The manager said as he pushed an envelope across the table towards her. "Thing is, I can't afford to keep you."

"Is it because of what that asshole did?" she asked, stoicially, knowing that she was about to be shat on from a great height. She was a nobody and, well, nobodies were expendable.

"I'm just surprised at you. Disappointed really. I didn't think you were like that." He replied sadly with a strange look on his face – a mixture of sadness, pity and shame.

"I'm not! I haven't done anything wrong…" she exclaimed passionately, angry at the injustice of his words as she stood up, wringing her hands in one last ditch attempt to prove her innocence.

"Don't make this any worse!" he bit back. "I can't trust you! Just be lucky that I'm paying you till the end of week. I don't have to you know." He added forcefully, though they both knew he was lying - that he was paying her off to ease his conscience.

She'd been a good employee. Scratch that, an excellent employee. Dependable, regular, popular and trustworthy. But he couldn't afford the bad publicity that he'd get if the senator got involved. Plus the upstanding (cough) and so, so honest (cough) politician's lawyers were bigger and better than anything 'Dave's Diner' could come up with. "Now get out! I don't ever want to see you round here, you understand?!" He added roughly as he dismissed the best waitress he'd ever had.

A tear fell from Steph's eye and she angrily swiped the back of her hand over her cheek as she reached over and snatched up the brown envelope he shoved across the desk at her. If she hadn't been so desperate she'd have torn it up and thrown it back at him.

He was lying, they both knew it. She'd done nothing wrong but somehow the hot shot, senator's son had twisted the events and managed to point the finger at her. He'd turned the tables and accused her of doing exactly what he'd been doing - she'd caught him with his hand in the cash register - with the lack of witnesses it was his word against hers. If it had ever gone to court who would the jury have believed? Him? An upstanding member of the public with a Teflon-coated politician for a father or her - a single mom, down on her luck...

Nope, he'd used his father's reputation to get the blame levelled at her and she knew she didn't have a leg to stand on. There was nothing she could do and she knew it.

Dropping her shoulders in defeat, she turned and fled, leaving the little bit of dignity she still had left scattered over the cheap linoleum floor.

Oblivious to the almost silent "I'm sorry, so fucking sorry" that her boss whispered, with glassy eyes, as she disappeared.

o0o0o0o0o

"I miss her, ya know." Les said wistfully.

Bobby gave him a knowing look. "Don't!" he added with a growl. "don't say _her_ name… out…. loud" he ground out pleadingly. "Ranger may not be in the building, in fact fuck knows where he's gone this time to save the world, but he'd know", he added with sorrow filled eyes.

Everyone at Rangeman agreed that although Ranger may be a total idiot, his radar was not nor had ever been on the fritz. He'd somehow know they'd been talking about _her_. It was as if the walls had ears and would tattle tale on anyone who was stupid enough to utter those three immortal words: 'Stephanie Michelle Manoso'. It was rumoured that someone had once been stupid enough to say her name in his presence and had been shipped to Siberia armed with a toothpick. And even though it was probably only a rumour… probably… well, it was better to be safe than sorry.

These days and despite their paranoia, Bobby knew they'd be in for a world of hurt if they ever reminded their friend and boss that he'd screwed up the best thing that had ever happened to him or hinted that she'd once been such a vital and integral part of Team Rangeman.

And now she was gone.

To who knows where.

He just hoped she was happy. Away from the man who'd forced her to leave and the family who had let her go.

He missed her badly. Missed her tasty cake runs. Her attitude. Hell, even the battles they'd had with getting her into the gym or onto the gun range. But it was all gone. Just like her. It was as if she'd never existed. All traces of her erased in a single moment. Everything fed to the flames of hate and destruction that Ranger had unleashed when he'd literally thrown her out of the building.

Even now, he still had vivid dreams about the look on her face when she'd left. Struggling to stand upright as Ranger's tirade threatened to topple her…

God! He hoped she had survived and somehow bounced back in the way that only Bomber could and was having a good life, filled with love and laughter and good people.

She deserved nothing less.

o0o0o0o0o

Hunkering in on top of the tumbled down building that doubled as a hospital to the poor bastards who called this God forsaken hell hole 'home', Ranger grunted.

The imagined ache in his shoulder from the bullet that ended his life as he knew it a constant reminder of the place he'd once thought of as home and the once welcoming arms that held him close to its pumping rhythm.

Damn _that_ woman!

But Jeanne Ellen was gone, cold in the ground where he'd dumped her body once he'd meted out his own form of justice. But it had all been for naught and had come far too late.

Too late to save his marriage.

Too late for him to take back the things he'd said when drunk on whisky and falsehoods.

Too late for him to catch her before she ran.

And run she did.

Stephanie was gone to God knows where – not that he'd ever tried to find her – he couldn't believe she would ever forgive him and the idea that she'd tell him to go to hell for a second time would just about finish him off.

But she'd learned from the best and had vanished into thin air, taking the best parts of him with her he thought blackly as he tried to focus on his surroundings even as his heart ached, reminiscing about the wondrous light filled life he'd fleetingly held in his arms.

For the _future_ they'd so nearly had. The life they'd planned with mutual love and respect, children...

He'd never loved anyone like he'd loved her and now…she was gone.

From his bed, from his life and it was all.

His.

Fault.

He should never have listened to the vipers that crawled into his brain – seeds of doubt planted by Burrows.

Goading him, needling him, leeching his love and replacing it with jealousy. Making him believe things that weren't true. But somehow. _Somehow_ he'd believed the hateful lies, believed the falsehoods and fabrications. He'd deceived himself into thinking he was an innocent victim and that it _was all_ his Babe's fault. Her fault that his much younger, innocent half brother was dead.

But he knew, he knew it had all been a figment. Stephanie Michelle Manoso, née Plum had not done anything wrong. He might as well have pulled the trigger himself.

He only had himself to blame.

He spotted movement out of the corner of his eye. Finally! His target had arrived. Ten days in this fly infested sweatbox had fried his brains and he was ready to go home. _Home!_ Ha, that was a joke! He had no home, just a place to rest his weary pathetic bones. She had taken home with her, along with his heart.

He angled his MK15 on the rock that doubled as a stand and slowed his breathing as he began to ready himself for the kill shot just as his target started climbing out of a beaten up old army jeep. This was a job he'd done so many times and it became second nature as he slanted his head in readiness and returned to his thoughts.

They say no man is an island, but he knew he was as close to being one any person could be without being completely dead. It was just his whole fucking…everything that had ceased to be when his Babe had fled Rangeman three years, 1 month and 17 days before.

When he'd fucked up the best thing that had _ever_ happened to him.

Thinking back to his last session with Barnaby – the Rangeman shrink who'd he'd paid good money to over the last two years as he sought to dig up and destroy some of his many, many demons – his final words were indelibly stamped in his mind.

_Flashback__:_

"_Ric you need to take on this last final demon face to face. Find your woman and talk to her. See which way the land lies and explain things. Not just with one word statements but with full sentences and you need to talk her through how you saw things and how they affected your judgement in the run up to and including Chico's death and then what happened after It's going to get ugly but if half of what you've unloaded on me in the last couple of years is ever going to be completely annihilated from your cupboard full of skeletons she needs to know. _

_She deserves to know. _

_What a fuck up you've been. _

_How stupid you were to believe Burrows and how you've dealt with the aftermath._

"_She may never totally forgive you but at least she might just understand that in your own stupid way it was because you cared too much."_

"_Payback will be a bitch, all right." Ranger replied sadly. "I certainly don't deserve her forgiveness and I doubt she'll ever trust me again, but you're right. Full and frank disclosure is the only option."_

_Barnaby nodded sadly as he looked at his watch and then stood up with Ranger mirroring his actions. The psychiatrist clasped Ranger's upper arms momentarily before wordlessly dismissing him with a searching look and a nod which Ranger returned before crisply turning and leaving the room as silently as smoke._

_End flashback_

A glimmer of something unknown flickered in his heart as he readied his rifle. A trickle of resolve danced round his head as he took his final steadying breath. A new determination as he squeezed the trigger and a sense of satisfaction and purpose blossomed as he watched the fanatic drop to the floor, red blooming from a tiny black circle that appeared between the man's startled eyes even as his brains were ejected through the back of his skull.

He was going to find his way back home.

He needed to atone for his sins, stupidity and misjudgements and claw his way back into her heart. If she'd have him.

And if she didn't, he'd learn to cope.

Somehow.

He knew he had to find her first and put together a plan to make her see that he was no hero (Christ, he'd proved that already and by the bucket load) but a stupid, simple man who'd fucked up royally.

Steeling his resolve as chaos reigned within the scene unfolding in the small square two thousand and thirty eight metres away, panic rising, guns drawn, distant shouts for help as muted screaming filled the air, he stood quickly and silently. Swiftly leaving the scene as he pulled out his phone to dial up the exfil team.

Wishing instead he had the courage to dial up the love of his life instead.

o0o0o0o0o

**So, dear readers, more of what happened has been explained (Ok, well perhaps a tiny percentage but enough to let you all start joining some of the dots)**

**Thank you so much for your amazing comments. I know I haven't replied to all of you but things are frantic at this end. Only upside is that the less time I have, the more I want to write (does that make me a mosochist?!)**

**R&R please... mwah**

**xox**


	4. Chapter 4

**I know, I know, I keep drip feeding you bits and pieces but if I gave you everything to begin with you'd all know too much and quite honestly, I'm not sure our main characters know everything - yet...**

**Thank you so much for your wonderful words and without further ado, I present chapter 4.**

**R&R, you know you want to ;-)**

**x0x**

o0o0o0o0o

It was midafternoon when Steph reached the outskirts of a small town where she'd figured they'd bed down for the night, but things seemed to be going from bad to worse when she realised they might need to find somewhere to stop, sooner rather than later if her latest POS car's engine noises were anything to go by.

"Please don't die, please don't die, please don't die…" Steph muttered softly, hoping against hope that if they needed to stay she'd find a job in the town they'd just passed the sign for which read: "Welcome to Grapevine – the Christmas Capital of Texas!".

Ironically, the sun beat down on the roof of the car, it was going to be another relentless day of cloudless skies and dust in 'Christmas Town'.

"Mommy? Mommy!" Charlie wailed nervously, clutching Bunbun as the car gave a death rattle of epic proportions, jostling them both. Steph signalled then manoeuvered out of the traffic and managed to nurse the car over to the side of the road just as it gave its final gasp then stopped completely. Steam poured from beneath the hood as Steph turned to look at her daughter.

"S'ok, Sweetie" She said reassuringly as she patted her knee then quickly turned, pulling her keys from the ignition and scrabbling for her purse which had fallen into the passenger's footwell.

"Mommy? Mommy! Look! Fire, Mommy! Fire!" Charlie screeched, her voice now laden with panic.

What Steph had thought was steam had in fact been smoke and small flames were now starting to appear on the once blue, now mottled blue/grey paintwork of her Ford Escort and the putrid, toxic emissions were now starting to trickle into the interior and across Steph's feet.

Steph threw herself out of the driver's door at warp speed, wrenching the back door open as quickly as her panicked state would let her as she dived to wrestle her now hysterical daughter out of her car seat. Staggering with Charlie in her arms she pulled her to safety by the edge of the road where her knees buckled and she folded herself somewhat gracefully to the sidewalk with her precious bundle in her arms.

Worried onlookers were starting to gather and stare at the curious sight of her latest POS that now had smoke and flames pouring out from under the hood. They watched in morbid fascination and horror as the fire took hold and began to lick its way across the hood and up the windshield. A few people tried to take photos and a couple of them were on the phone, hopefully to the emergency services. An older man hurried over to them to see how they were - his focus and concern reminded her so much of Ric and his reaction during similar scenarios so many years ago and her breath caught in her throat.

By the time he'd reached them a small group gathered round them, checking that they had not been harmed in any way and he posed the question they all wanted answering. "You ok, Lady?" he asked with a deep, gruff voice as he got down on his haunches so that they were at the same level as Charlie who was sobbing into Bunbun and wrapped up in Steph's arms, her nose buried into the crook of her mother's neck.

She nodded stiffly, numbly in dazed shock.

She could hear a siren gaining ground in the background and was immediately dragged back to another time. How long had it been since a car of hers had gone to the heap big happy hunting grounds in the sky? Too long to even think about, that's how long ago. A lifetime, too painful to contemplate, ago.

Dismissing her thoughts angrily she tried to focus on the here and now.

Nope, no siree. A long time ago she vowed she would never ever go there again, she wasn't strong enough.

Not. Never. No-how.

The man was still visually checking the pair of them over, patiently waiting for her to collect her thoughts.

Steph shook her head sadly. No, she wasn't alright. Everything they owned, with the exception of her purse and Bunbun, had just gone up in flames. Her precious photo albums, the lock of hair from Charlotte's first trip to a salon, the tiny socks she'd worn when she brought her out of the hospital for the first time. Gone, all gone…

The look of defeat in her heart broke something in him.

"S'ok Lady. You'll be ok. I've got your back." He said gently as he pulled the two shell shocked casualties into his embrace.

Onlookers new to the scene assumed the embrace was a three generation thing, that the man carefully holding the woman in his arms was her father.

"Shh, Lady." He said as he began to rise taking them with him – the position they'd been in was _killing_ his knees _and_ his back. "It'll be OK."

A flicker of something filled her "Maybe, just maybe," the angel sitting on Steph's shoulder whispered hopefully, "we're on the way back up. After all, we can't go any lower surely?!…"

o0o0o0o0o

"Report!" Ranger barked out at the beginning of Monday morning's meeting. He'd been back in the US for four days and back at Rangeman since late last night.

He'd spent a day de-briefing during which he'd resigned his commission with immediate effect. Once he knew he was free the newly retired Lieutenant Colonel had returned to civvy street with a new resolve. To right the wrongs of his past - his first and only port of call so far had been to Chez Manoso.

_Flashback_

"_Carlos? Oh oy God! Enrique! Carlos is here!" his mother sobbed out emotionally. "Our hijo is here! He's home!" she yelled joyfully as she launched herself at the man who just come up the path and knocked on their front door. The last time they'd seen him was at Chico's funeral and he'd kept right back from the burial site then run like a jack rabbit at the end of the service before anyone could approach him._

_Ranger caught her as he staggered over the threshold and buried his face in her hair. "Mama! I'm so sorr…" he managed to get out before he was shushed._

"_Oh Baby. It's going to be OK" his mother sobbed softly pulling his face down so she could take a good look at him "It's ok, Momma's here…" she kept repeating over and over as she pulled him back into her neck as she stroked his buzz cut. The gentle mantra which had been used from the time he was a babe in arms to encourage him to sleep when he'd been poorly or when his teething pains got too much, started to calm them both down. _

"_Maria? Maria?!" a smaller and older version of Ranger asked as he rushed to join them both. "You're here! You're actually here! You're home…son… I never thought I'd see you again…" Enrique sobbed out as he clutched them both fiercely as they stood in their large hallway._

_"I've fucked up, Mom, I'm so sorry but I've fucked up, Dad..." he tearfully whispered again and again._

_Time stood still as Maria continued to whisper the soft chant over the top of his words in an attempt to calm her son's raging mind. As far as she was concerned he was home and the rest... well they'd deal with the rest later._

_End flashback_

"The Taylor account goes live today so Lester and Timo will be overseeing the switch over. It should all go smoothly as the testing was finished yesterday. If they're happy with the results then we stand to roll the solution out over their other eight sites." Tank began.

Ranger nodded outwardly calm even as he fought to stop his knee from jiggling.

"We will be installing large blow up clowns with laser beam eyes in all the malls in Trenton and Boston to blow up naughty or noisy kids... We can't get these elsewhere so we'll use bunnies in Miami…" he continued. Ranger said nothing.

"Goddamit, Cousin! Have you heard a word Tank just said?" Les questioned with a grin before slamming his palms down on the table for effect, making everyone jump.

"Sorry? You were saying…" Ranger replied, startled by the noise but clearly not listening.

Shaking his head in exasperation, Tank tsked loudly, frowned then continued, properly this time. "Bertram Taylor will be heading up the test team from his end so that we can liaise…"

Ranger could contain himself no longer so abruptly stood effectively silencing his second in command.

"I'm sorry." Ranger began as he ran his hands through his non-existent locks. His Babe had loved his long hair so it had been the first thing to go after she'd gone, taking her light with her. Maybe it was time to let it grow back…

"Focus soldier…!" his inner voice commanded.

Cautious bemusement at his obvious indecision filled the room as he let out a deep sigh, making his shoulders drop. There'd been a lot of sighing recently but something about Ranger's latest sigh gave them all hope.

The core team gave each other knowing looks. This had been a long time coming and God knows what had heralded it, but it looked as if Ranger had finally come to his senses. Maybe this time the office would still be a good place to work in an hours' time.

Tank leant back, his eyes missing nothing as he silently implored his friend / boss / hero to continue.

"I know I've been a nightmare – a complete bastard…"

Comments muttered under the men's breath such as "No? Surely not!" "Ya think?" and "Harrumph…" (That was Tank) cut him off.

He gave them all an apologetic look before continuing. "I've been like a bear with a sore head since… _that night_."

"No, wanker's more accurate…" someone ground out. Now _that_ was definitely Lester – Ranger knew that much as ever since their trip to London where they'd picked up the swear word, Lester used it constantly as he liked the way it sounded.

"Ok, Les! I _get_ it! I've been an absolute _wanker*_!" he growled out forcefully before dropping his head "but like I said, I'm sorry…" he added softly, placing his extended arms on the table looking down momentarily, with one leg bent and the other stretched out behind him, before looking up pointedly at each and every one of the men round the table.

"I'm going to get my shit together and start trying to mend bridges. I've started with my folks and Julie is next on my list but to do so I'm gonna need to take time off. Real time out if I'm going to sort myself out once and for all."

Tank nodded for him to continue, worried that he was about to cancel his leave.

"Once you get back from your honeymoon, Tank, I'm going in the wind."

There was a collective groan which Ranger stifled by using the universal stop sign with his hand.

"I've resigned my commission and am now a free agent." He explained once things had calmed down.

He thought he heard a softly hissed "yes!" from several places and a couple of "about fucking time's!"

"This next mission will take a lot of planning and research as my… target has been missing for just over three years." 'Three years, one month and 22 days, actually' his mind reminded him petulantly as it crossed its arms and glared at him.

"I don't know how long it will take to search, apprehend and persuade her, er my target to talk to me but I'm hoping to bring her home. Back into all of our lives, not just mine. I have a feeling I may be gone some time."

Everyone in the room knew he was being extremely optimistic about the possible outcome of this particular _mission_. When the shit hit the fan and Steph galloped out of Trenton three years ago as if the flames of hell had been licking at her heels, Ranger had forbidden them all from going after her. By the time the dust had settled and Ranger had gone into the wind so they could ignore his orders she'd completely disappeared.

It was ironic that someone who'd been so good at uncovering the hiding places of her skips had used this knowledge against them all.

They all just hoped and prayed that she'd landed on her feet and was in a better place than she had been on that dark night.

After the meeting wound down and Ranger left, Tank got out his phone and texted Hector back at Trenton. If anyone could work out where she'd gone it would be him. He'd get him to start trawling through camera footage using the latest face rec software. Needle in a haystack perhaps, but at least it was a start and for the first time, sanctioned by the boss.

o0o0o0o0o

* I love this word - the verb to wank means to jerk off but when used as a swear word is a general insult

**Until the same time next week, peeps **

**Mwah**


	5. Chapter 5

**I promised a chapter a week and so far its all going to plan but now that we've hit the school holidays I'm going to be a bit more hit and miss with posting times so please bear with me.**

**Thank you so much for all your kind and encouraging words and I am loving your various theories on our heroine and her potential rescuers plus a few of the merry men so you should all soon find out whether you're right or wrong...**

**So, dear readers, brace yourselves - we're going in...**

o0o0o0o0o

"I'm afraid there's nothing we can do, Ma'am. Your vehicle is beyond repair." The lead firefighter, who's badge said 'Donaldson' stated as he stood in front of Steph, towering over her at 6'6" plus.

She felt like saying "no shit, Sherlock" but her anxiety levels were rising so she just stood, holding Charlie's hand, numbly watching Donaldson's team as they put their equipment away.

Little fingers tugged on her own "Where we gonna sleep now, Mommy?"

Steph shrugged her shoulders, she really had no answers. In the last three years, just when she thought her luck was as low as it could go, it would take another nose dive. She wasn't sure how much more she could take but she'd be damned if she would throw herself on the mercy of anyone back in Trenton. She'd not spoken to a single person from there since that fateful day. She had no idea what they were all up to, not even her beloved Grandma Mazur… a lump got stuck in her throat and she squeezed her daughter's hand gently as she thought of her crazy relative, hoping she was still alive and giving everyone a run for their money.

"Hey, don't you worry, Little Thing. Uncle Lucas knows somewhere you can stay where you'll be very welcome and very safe." The old guy with the mane of silver-white hair who'd given them such a warm and comforting hug stated softly.

"Do you trust me?" he asked as he stretched out his hand.

Steph's spidey senses told her she should so she nodded, cautiously.

"Lucas Garcia at your service, Ma'am." He said as he handed her his drivers licence to confirm who he was.

At that moment Donaldson wandered over to let them know that he was leaving and that a tow truck was on its way to remove the debris "Ma'am. Oh hi Lucas, you ok?" He began. Steph nodded, holding the licence in one hand with the other one on Charlie's shoulder.

Lucas gave a smile of recognition "Yeah, just rescuing this damsel in distress. You know me, same ol' same ol" he explained with a smile and a soft chuckle.

"Best darn police chief we ever had." he said by way of explanation with a tilt of his head before adding "We're gonna leave now, ma'am but the tow truck is on its way and as there's nothing that can be done with the remains. It'll be written off so I'm gonna need your insurance details."

Steph nodded "Stephanie Maria Richardson, date of birth 10th of August 1986" she stated without flinching then proceeded to give him her phone and insurance details, knowing that if anyone was looking for her they'd not be able to find her through either fictitious set of information. In the beginning these details would not have rattled off her tongue so easily, she remembered with an inner smile at some of the looks people had given her when she stumbled over this most basic of information.

It was better that way Amy had told her when they set up her new identity at the women's refuge. Near enough that she would be able to remember it, but too far away for anyone to trace. Ranger's birth month, her birth date and a year younger, she could live with that. His first name sorta became her surname…

Once they'd completed the formalities Donaldson and his crew left and as they pulled away the tow truck arrived, quickly backing up to the once bright and shiny car. 'Garcia Recovery' it said on the side and Steph looked quizzically at Lucas, after all, he too was a Garcia.

"Family" he answered as he waved at the young man who jumped out of the driver's side wearing bright red coveralls - sandy blond hair, blue eyes and severe overbite. His passenger however made Steph flinch. He could have been Lester's younger brother but as she'd never met the Santos side of the family she was only guessing. Deciding to feign ignorance she stood and watched as the two men manoeuvred the towing rig under the front wheels then pulled the carcass onto the flat bed. Within ten minutes they were gone.

"Wanna tell me why you looked like you were about to lose your lunch?" Lucas asked nonchalantly as he pulled back into the traffic a few minutes later as Steph sat in Lucas' top of the line white Ford Ranger pulling the seat belt round both her and Charlie who was snuggled on her knee.

"The second guy? He just reminded me of someone, is all." She said, returning his feigned nonchalance while focusing on her daughter and waggling Bunbun at her.

Charlie had been remarkably calm, taking everything in as she'd watched the scenes unfolding. She was like Ranger when she did that. She had no doubt her daughter was going to grow up just like him and her heart clenched at the thought of him missing out for a second time. Only this time, he was not going to be able to step up and be her knight in shining armour as he had no clue she existed.

Lucas nodded in reply. He was not stupid, he could see that something about the truck had startled her and when Trey had jumped out from the passenger side she'd definitely gasped. He'd let it lie for the moment but something about what she was not saying troubled him. "softly, softly, catchy monkey" he thought as he drove towards his mother's place.

"Ok, so here's the thing." He began as he picked up speed and headed further into town. "My wife is out of town at the moment and I was on my way to my mother's to check up on her. If you've no better place to be, why don't we head on over together? I'm sure she'd put you up for the night, she's plenty of space."

"Are you sure? You've been so kind already." Steph asked, surprised that a complete stranger could make such a generous gesture. Since leaving the refuge she'd been on her own with very little help or support.

"No problems. She gets a little lonely now Dad's gone and the place is big enough so why not?"

Steph tilted her head as she considered her options. Maybe in a couple of days she would head back to Wyoming once she sorted out the insurance money from her car but right now and for some reason the gesture felt right and so with a shaky smile and determined nod Steph mentally reached out to grab on tight.

o0o0o0o0o

Taking a deep breath, Ranger picked up the phone, staring at the buttons as if they were going to bite him.

Over the years he'd tried so many times to call his precious Babe, but had always failed spectacularly. Every time he'd gotten halfway through the number sequence that was indelibly printed in his mind, he'd bottled out. He hoped she was safe and that one day she'd understand but not condone his accusations or actions. Forgiveness? Well that was never going to happen, he thoughts sourly.

Everything he'd thrown at her had been hurled through a jealousy filled, grief riddled haze but at the time he thought he'd had the evidence to back up everything he'd spewed out. Turns out he'd been wrong. So very wrong. She'd been the innocent victim in all that had gone down and he really, really wanted to tell her he was sorry. Sorry for breaking her heart, tearing their relationship to shreds…

But that was a conversation he'd probably never get the luxury of having.

There were other bridges he could mend, or at least attempt to repair to some degree. Parental love was unconditional, daughter love, however was not… He returned the handset to its base and walked backwards, away from it. He wasn't ready.

He'd try again later.

o0o0o0o0o

The large, carefully tended front yard was protected from the heat by two enormous velvet mesquite trees that led up to a sprawling soft salmon pink stucco covered single storey ranch style house. Stones of all shapes and sizes ran in front of the detached property where small flowering plants had been interspersed, seemingly randomly, between some of the smaller baked potato sized rocks. The careful, casual effect had obviously taken time, a seriously clever landscape gardener and plenty of money to affect.

"Welcome to my humble abode." Lucas said as he rolled up the drive towards the double garage that disappeared into the right-hand side of the home.

"Actually, that's not quite true" he continued as he put the car into park. "It was sorta mine… until I grew up and left home. Come on!" He finished enthusiastically with a flourish and a wink.

"It's beautiful." Steph said as she studied the exterior all the while clutching tightly onto her daughter who was studying the house from the safety of her mother's lap.

Lucas had coaxed them into his car and explained that as he was the retired local chief of police if anyone stopped them to complain about the lack of child's seat, he'd be able to deal with it.

With a call to his replacement, if needs be, he'd added with a knowing look.

"Mom knows we're coming and that you need a bed for the night." He began, knowing full well that once his mother had seen these two beautiful strays, she'd insist they stay as long as it took for Stephanie to get back on her feet.

"We'll get a car seat tomorrow." He added with a finality that brooked no argument.

o0o0o0o0o

Ten minutes after his first attempt, Ranger picked up the phone and tried again. Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, he got as far as the sixth digit before slamming the phone down.

Running his hands through his non-existent hair, he tried again. Getting to the tenth before bottling it.

"This is ridiculous!" He yelled rhetorically. "How fucking hard can it be?" he added as he slumped to the floor he shaking his head to dispel the panic.

Finally he'd dialled all the numbers and could hear the phone ring at the other end. "Man up, Rangeman!" he thought darkly. "It's show time…"

"Rachel?" he asked tentatively as a woman's voice answered.

o0o0o0o0o

A small immaculately dressed woman opened the door just as the trio exited the car and made their way towards the deep porch that protected the front from the searing sun.

"Hello Lucas! Long time no see!" She teased with a warm smile. He'd been to see her only yesterday after he'd dropped his wife Angela at the airport. "What brings you to my door?" She asked her smile widening in genuine pleasure that went all the way into her eyes.

Although small in height she was soft and round and seemingly not a day over 50.

"Hi Mom. I come bearing gifts." He replied with a smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye.

"Really?"

"Yes really. Mom I'd like to introduce you to Stephanie and Charlie." He explained even as he gently ushered them forward.

"Stephanie, Charlie. This is my Mom, Delfia."

o0o0o0o0o

"You've got one hell of a nerve, Carlos!" Rachel began, hiding her surprise under the suppressed anger she knew she'd feel if he ever bothered to ring. He'd fucked up royally. Leaving Julie confused and angry when he'd stopped calling, just after Stephanie left.

Three.

Years.

Ago…

Admittedly he still sent money but the emails and phone calls that had been steadily building stopped completely and Julie had been way beyond hurt by his actions.

She didn't know the ins and outs of the argument that drove Stephanie from Trenton, but if he was being his usual martyred and tortured self, he only had himself to blame.

"Rachel, please!" He implored, his voice hitching as he tried to control the tears that threatened to fall. "I'm sorry. So…_fucking_…sorry." He whispered unaware that he'd lost the fight with the water in his eyes.

"Don't swear at me." Rachel replied, the wind completely gone from her sails as she listened to the anguish clearly etched into his voice. Even thought she was no longer incandescent with rage she would neither forgive nor forget the fallout as he abandoned Julie for a second time. "What do you want?" She asked warily.

"Just to speak to you. I can't even begin to justify my actions." He added softly. "I should never have pulled away when Steph and I broke up…"

"I heard you kicked the poor woman out of your building with nothing but a battered suitcase of clothes and a laundry basket." She growled out. "Oh, and a piece of shit car that probably only lasted to the end of the block. Though Tank tells me they found no evidence of it."

"Tank spoke to you?"

"Of course he did – Tanks _speaks_ to me. Regularly! He's been keeping me up to date with your pity party and anger management issues. Aaaaannd Les might have whined about your idea of Rangeman discipline from time to time…"

"What the…!"

"Stop right there, mister!" Rachel interrupted "Don't touch that train of thought with a shitty stick, I mean it! Not that you deserve it but there are still a few people who care about you enough to let me know what is happening to the father of my child. For someone so selfish as to do what you did to those you purport to love, you are one really lucky guy who has better friends than he deserves."

"Ouch… I guess I deserved that." Ranger replied, rubbing the back of his neck with embarrassment before wiping the tears from his cheek. Dios! She'd never sugar coated anything before and it seemed like she wasn't about to start now.

"So. What do you really want? Because if it's to tell me that you're going permanently into the wind, never to return, I'm all for it. However, I think a certain troubled teenager might never recover. But. If it's to ask Julie to forgive you, you've got one hell of a challenge on your hands and a lot of growelling to do."

"Yeah. I guessed as much. I'm taking extended leave once Tank gets back from his honeymoon. Do you think we could arrange to meet and discuss what I can do to make it up to Julie?" he asked, hopefully.

Rachel burst into laughter and the sounds of her mirth flooded Ranger's apartment. "Good luck with that!" She finally gasped out. "You've heard the phrase Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, I take it?"

Ranger nodded silently and gulped audibly. "That bad, huh?"

"And some…"

o0o0o0o0o

Steph sank into the heavenly, clean sheets that Delfia had pulled out of a cupboard and Lucas had put on the queen sized bed in one of the guest rooms with a contented sigh. She couldn't believe her luck she realised as she thought about the kindness of these two extraordinary strangers.

The room was a good size, warm and welcoming and painted in muted tones but with enough knick knacks that it felt like someone cared about the space, even though it was clearly seldom used. Thick linen drapes in pale blue, ivory and aqua stripes surrounded the large picture window which looked out onto a large yard that was just as immaculate as the front one had been.

Fate had somehow put Delfia and Lucas in the right place at the right time and they'd realised she needed a friend. "See, you're on the way up." Her inner angel quipped as she clapped her hands together with delight. The pessimist, however, was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Shrugging away the negative thoughts she gazed over into the corner of the room where Charlie lay, sprawled across the mattress they'd put on the floor and barricaded with cushions in case her nightly gymnastics got a bit too carried away.

The biggest thing about the space was that for the first time in a long time she felt safe. Safe to protect and bring up her daughter. She knew it was just a temporary thing, but outside of when she'd first married Ranger, she couldn't remember a time where she'd felt so… peaceful. She really didn't want that feeling to go away again, and certainly not in the same abrupt and devastating way.

A smile flickered over her face. It felt weird. It seemed like it had been a long time since she'd used those particular facial muscles, she mused as sleep pulled her under.

In the kitchen, unbeknownst to her, Lucas and Delfia were deep in conversation.

"Poor girl." Delfia stated sadly as she glanced up in the vague direction of her spare room. "She looks so sad, so alone. Tell me again how you came to find her."

"I was driving down the 195 heading into town when I spotted a beaten up old Ford Escort. Couldn't have been doing more than 25 and I think it was struggling to stay at that speed. As we turned off the highway and into town I noticed it began to leak grey smoke from the exhaust which sprayed the ground behind it. I thought I'd keep an eye out as I was in no hurry. All of a sudden the grey smoke turned to deep black billowing clouds and suddenly the car began to shudder. Stephanie managed to get it into the curb before it died. She quickly clambered out, grabbing Charlie and making a run for it just as flames leapt from under the hood."

He stopped for a moment, resting his forearms on his knees before taking a deep breath and continuing.

"Mom, she looked so defeated, as if the whole world was crushing her down. The only things she had with her were her daughter and her purse. She hasn't said anything yet, but I don't think she has anyone left in the world who cares for her. Or her daughter. It broke my heart, Mom."

Delfia nodded, wisely. "Then it's decided. I'll tell her in the morning. She will stay with me until she gets back on her feet." She stated, crossing her arms across her ample bosom and nodding her head determinedly.

"I miss your Dad something fierce and it would be wonderful to have people staying here again. This house was made for a family and I miss the sound of children's laughter. I agree, Stephanie looks completely broken and I think she needs us as much as we need her. That little one, she reminds me so much of your cousin's son's daughter at the same age, excluding the riotous curls of course. I wonder what ever happened to him. Didn't he join the army or something?"

"Actually, you're right! Come to think of it she does look like Julie and even Carlos a bit but without her constant scowl or the depressed look he seems to constantly sport these days. No wonder his wife left him. Wouldn't it be funny if they were related?! Ha!" he smirked out. "Seriously though, Stephanie needs our help so tomorrow we'll need to make a list of things she'll have to go shopping for. Judging by the wreck she was driving I'd say money's fairly tight but I'm sure she's probably entitled to some financial aid so I'll look into that. Perhaps if she opens up a little we can find Charlie's deadbeat father and sort out getting money out of him."

"Careful, Lucas." His mother admonished. "There's a reason she's all alone. Her ex could be bad news. Maybe he's in prison. Maybe he beat her or God forbid Charlie, or harmed them in some other way. I think we need to be really careful how we go about doing right by her. I'd say she's been alone so long she doesn't know how to ask for help and if the ex is as big a bastard as I think he probably is, she'll not thank us for getting him involved."

"Yeah, you're probably right, she flinched when she saw a pick up truck from Enrique's fleet come to pick up the wreckage from the fire. And she definitely did a double take when she saw Trey, but she told me it was because he reminded her of someone, I think I'll get a guy I know at Rangeman to do a quick look at our fallen angel – he owes me a couple of favours - so that we can protect her. I'm sure it's nothing, but... Actually, Mom, I think I _will_ stay the night, just to keep an eye on things. Angela's gone up early to help her mother and Celia organise Tia Maria's surprise 60th so I've a couple more days before I head up to Newark. Guess I've got a couple of days to help Stephanie get her life in order."

"That would be really helpful. I'm not so quick on my toes these days so a spare pair of hands to help our guests get settled would be useful. Anyway, I'm off to bed so I'll see you bright and early." She said as she stood up and wandered off towards her room.

"Night Mom!"

"Night Lucas."

o0o0o0o0o

"Oh Hi Dad – or should I say when the going gets tough the tough fuck off and drop their only daughter like a hot brick… deadbeat Dad" Julie said accusingly in the way that only a stroppy teenager can, as she stared at her father across the table at the local diner.

"Ouch. I guess I asked for that." He replied sadly.

"Yeah, You did. What do you want anyway? Lottie's meeting me to take me to the cinema to catch a movie in 10."

"What are you going to see?"

"No idea, but it means you have ten, no nine minutes to state your intent." She stated as she looked up from her phone, cocked her head and folded her arms as she waited for him to reply. Her blank face firmly in place. And what a blank face. If Ranger hadn't been so filled with remorse he'd have told her how proud he was of her and the young lady she was becoming.

As the silence lengthened she slowly and deliberately raised one eyebrow. "Well? I haven't got all day…_Dad_"

Taking a deep breath he leant back in the booth and played with the end of the straw in his drink. "I can't and won't go into the reasons why Steph and I split up as that's irrelevant, but I need to explain my subsequent actions…"

"Ha! That's easy. You fucked up. Throwing away one of two people who loved you unconditionally over some… _thing_. And you felt soooo bad you decided to screw over the only other person who also loved you unconditionally. Sucks to be you… _Dad_. Admit it, you're such a retard that you didn't see it. You _still_ don't see it. Steph loved you Dad! She was your reason for living. She made you a better person. She made you re-evaluate everything you'd ever stood for. Everything you'd ever seen or done and yet for some… reason... you decided that the one adult in this whole wide world outside your army cronies who unequivocally had your back wasn't as perfect as you wanted them to be. You dumped her big time – I heard Tank tell Mom how she left with not much more than the shirt on her back and no dignity. How you threw her out. She was your _wife_ not like Mom who you'd married out obligation but your _real_ wife who you'd married out of _love_.

"I was once told my Dad was a soldier with the highest principles. I was told he was fair and listened to all sides of the argument. That he always looked for the good in his colleagues and teams. How he strived to support those in need and defended and protected the defenceless. I have no idea what Steph's crimes were but I sure as anything know that she didn't deserve the punishment you dished out.

"You are not the man I thought you were – you've become a monster. Once I worshipped you, now I don't even want to be in the same town as you. You are no longer someone I aspire to be."

Taking a quick look at her watch she stood. "I've gotta go now _Dad_. Make amends with Steph _Dad_ and if she can ever forgive you then come talk to me. But not before." Turning to wave at the tall gawky girl masquerading as a twenty something who was waiting nervously at the diner's entrance, she stomped off to join her.

Ranger blinked as he sat in shock. Reeling from the vitriol his daughter had poured over him. Part of his was horrified at her argument and the disappointment and hurt that he had clearly caused. Part of him was so proud of the astounding dressing down she'd just given him in such a measured and adult way. One that few men had ever had the balls to try to do.

Rachel was right, it would be a cold day in Hell before she forgave him and allowed him back into her life.

Throwing a handful of notes down on the table that more than covered the bill he left, determined to prove to his daughter that he was sorry and that he was worthy of her time.

o0o0o0o0o

**So, there we have it. For those of you who thought there might be a family connection...perhaps you're right. And who is our merry man? Who is Trey and how do the Garcias fit in?**

**All will be revealed...soon**

**R&R, it makes me type and edit faster.**

**Mwah**


	6. Chapter 6

**I'm loving your reviews and would like to say a big thank you to you all for making me laugh, especially Babesrus2 who said "I could say that you are a cruel woman to leave us on this note, but since I am Canadian and we are supposedly a polite company, I will instead say, 'You're leaving us on this cliff for a week?'" **

**hahaha (sorry)**

**Some of you are starting to pick up the connections but they will become more clear as the story progresses, so, for Babesrus2 and all you other lovely readers… **

**We're away for a long weekend but am posting this chapter while we have a lazy afternoon on our balcony, watching the rain come and go, listening to seagulls and watching the boats meander in and out of the harbour. sigh. Bliss.**

**We're away again for another long weekend the week after so will hopefully do the same round about that Saturday, but the wifi there will be sporadic so I may have to wait till I return. That said, we've started packing up the house in anger so I may lose my laptop in the chaos and don get me started on whether we'll have working wifi...**

o0o0o0o0o

"Are you sure, Stephanie?" Delfia asked for the third time. She'd been happily hovering in the kitchen putting the morning meal together as soon as Steph and Charlie came through for breakfast.

"I'm sorry, I really can't eat another pancake. I'll explode!" she replied with a giggle. "They are totally delicious but seriously, any more and I think I'll go bang!"

"Nonsense my Dear. You need to put some flesh back on your bones." She added gently even as she dropped a couple more bits of the warm, light and fluffy treat onto Charlie's plate.

Moments later Lucas wandered in "Is she giving you a hard time, Mom?" he asked, pulling his mother in for a gentle hug. Steph mentally sighed, wishing just once that her own Mom had believed hugs were the answer to everything rather than food. Food was easy to come by, but the unconditional comfort that a hug gave was priceless. Despite her own lacking upbringing, she was and always had been absolutely determined Charlie would grow up in a hug filled world.

"…anyway, Steph, we were wondering if we could ask you something." Delfia said, bringing Steph out of her mental meanderings.

"Sorry, what did you say, got lost in my own little world…" Steph asked with feigned nonchalance and a shrug, her chin tucked in against her chest so she could count the striations on the old, well loved pine table beneath her arms. Hoping that whatever they were going to ask wasn't too invasive - she was not ready to talk about her past. Not now and probably not ever. It was the past and that is firmly where it needed to stay, behind her. "sorry, go ahead." She added finally as she looked up braced herself for their questions.

"We were wondering if you'd like to stay here for a while." Delfia began as she slid sideways onto one of the tastefully distressed pine and white paint kitchen chairs. "I've got plenty of space to spare as you can see and I miss the chaos and fun of having a child in the house. Just till you get back on your feet, mind. You wouldn't be causing any bother, in fact you'd be helping _me_ out." She added as she leant over and gently put the fingers of one hand over Steph's.

"Wow! Well I wasn't expecting that!" Steph blew out as she tipped her head to one side with surprise. "But you don't know anything about me. I might have kidnapped my daughter in a nasty custody divorce, or… or be an escaped fugitive with an unknowing hostage… or…"

"S'OK, Sweetie, we get it." Lucas said with a smirk as he ruffled Charlie's hair from his spot at the table. Charlie smiled happily and swung her legs as she watched the adults from between sticky bites of golden batter. Like her father, Charlie missed nothing and had already developed a knack for picking up information.

"But we had a chat last night and don't think you're any of those things. You're just a single Mom down on her luck that we'd like to help out. Consider it our good deed for the day." Delfia said, squeezing Steph's hand gently. "Please say yes…" she urged. "I will put you to good use. My back yard needs a lot of help right now."

Steph looked out at the huge and open immaculate space, complete with distant crystal clear swimming pool that had a built in corner hot tub. "Really?" She replied with a smirk.

"Ok, so maybe I'm looking for things for you to do to pay me back. But the way I see it, you need a hand up and I could do with... a helping hand. With you and Charlie being here, I'd have a purpose again and people around that would help fill the silence that being alone in this house brings. Please say yes. Please… pretty please?"

Trying to look blazé while all the time she was mentally doing a happy dance she looked into the eyes of the woman across from her and seeing no hint of deceit, she slowly began to grin. "oh ok then" she huffed out theatrically, pretending to be reluctant. "If you put it like that, I'd be doing you a favour, right?"

Delfia nodded, her eyes crinkling with amusement.

"We'd pay our way. Somehow…"

Delfia nodded again, her smile starting to expand.

"It would only be a short term thing. Just till I got back on my feet?"

"Short term…" Lucas interjected with a nod. "…till you're up and running again." Even as he fought to keep his features of his face serious.

Steph nodded and snuffled happily. No-one had been this kind to her since… well since before Charlie had been born. "Yes!" she laughed out, joy pouring out of her, causing the adults round the table to chuckle gently with relief.

Charlie, sensing something big had just happened, clapped her hands and squealed with delight making everyone round the room full out laugh.

As Steph set about sorting her sticky little monkey out, Lucas and Delfia shared a knowing look.

Short term, my ass.

"So…" Began Lucas once Steph had given Charlie a hose down and set her up with Bun bun so that she could 'feed' him too, "If Mom is happy to keep Charlie entertained for a couple of hours, how 'bout we hit the shops and go get you a few things. What do you reckon?"

Steph looked nervous. True she had almost nothing but the clothes on her and Charlie's back but still…She could always hock her rings but was she really ready to cast aside the last piece of her previous life? Even though she knew that Carlos was out of her life… "I do have a couple of things that I could give you in payment for your kindness…" she began as she reached into her purse which was propped up at the base of one of the table legs and took out a small, bright red Chinese silk coin purse. Everyone round the table looked on silently as she unsnapped the popper, undid the zip with shaky hands and with a small sigh poured the contents into the palm of her hand. A simple yet very pretty slim band of platinum with modest yet stunning diamonds and a matching halo engagement ring with a huge sparkling rock of a diamond nestled at the centre and a band with diamonds that mirrored those of the wedding ring sat proudly in the creases of her hand.

"Wow!" Delfia breathed out softly, desperate to pick them up but yet not daring to touch their flawless simplicity. The diamond alone was large and at least two to three carats plus it looked to be really, really good quality, she mused. The ex was worth a few dollars clearly and the whole conundrum just got more intriguing. Who was Stephanie Richardson and what the hell had happened?

Lucas broke the spell gently "Put those away, Stephanie." He said softly, realising as he looked at her that she obviously hadn't been brave enough to look at them for a while judging by the look on her face. At that moment he absolutely knew she was a good person as she gazed lovingly at the enormous wealth she held. (He'd recently renewed his own insurance and knew what Angela's rings, which held diamonds a great deal smaller than the ones currently on display, were worth over $15,000.) It was clear that even if they'd been made of glass and silver, Stephanie Richardson would have loved them just as much.

"Oooh, pretty Mommy" Charlie cooed, breaking the spell that the moment had spun, as she made a beeline for the rings but before she could do so, Lucas reached over and gently folded her fingers over the priceless memories.

"Keep them for something special." He stated gently as he looked into her now glassy eyes. He was right, she'd use them for something special like Charlie's college fund. She'd never had them valued but knew they'd cost a pretty penny - Ranger had never stinted on anything when it had come to her. Where had it all gone so wrong? 'Burrows…and Chico…' a little voice whispered in her head.

"Honey, you and Charlie both need clothes, toothbrushes, shampoo…" Delfia said quietly, changing the subject and reminding her that she still had nothing to her name, well almost, as she caressed the back of Steph's other hand which was now sandwiched between her own. "Please, let me look after you…" she said but wanted to add "it's about time someone did."

"Ok, just the basics, ok? You've already been far too good to me." Steph insisted earnestly with a stiff nod. Anything more and she'd have lost the battle with the water that threatened to spill from her eyes. Her chin was already trembling in anticipation so she took a deep and wobbly sigh to help calm her down. She hadn't looked at the rings since before she'd found out Charlie was more than a figment of her imagination and it brought back the second most painful of memories. The first and most devastating being when he told her she was out of his life for good.

_Flashback_

_The shadows were long and Steph could just make out the shape of Chico, skulking round the edge of the old train carriage, determined to right the wrongs of _that _woman. How Carlos couldn't see what Burrows had been doing was beyond her so here she was, helping Chico with his hair brained scheme to expose the woman for what she really was._

_Chico was everything that Carlos wasn't. Happy-go-lucky, a complete flirt, noisy… and the more she though about tonight's events so far, naive and foolhardy. She loved him like a little brother – in the same way as Lester - his cousin. The only difference was that Les knew how to put a plan together, Chico was definitely flying by the seat of his pants and she'd enabled him by not involving the core team in their joint concerns over the hold Burrows seemed to be getting on her husband. _

_She just hoped it didn't all to go hell and starting silently praying as she watched Chico's back disappear before stepping out to follow as per their plan. Part of her thought they should have included Tank, Bobby, Lester or even Hector as back up and her spidey senses were screaming at her to call them but Chico wanted to do things his way and the Manoso clan were very determined when they wanted to be._

_Precisely at that moment, she noticed that her wedding and engagement ring were sparking even with the subdued light so she quickly took them off and was in the process of stuffing them into the leg pocket of her cargoes when she heard gun fire. Rushing to the scene with little or no thought to her own safety she raced round the side of the carriage to find Burrows standing over Chico with a happy, yet slightly crazy look on her face._

"_Glad you could join us, Plum." The hateful woman began as she waved nonchalantly down at Chico who was softly moaning at her feet._

"_Did you really think you could out smart me? Carlos is mine." She ground out, even as she stamped her foot onto Chico's arm hard enough that they both heard it snap. _

_Chico was clearly unconscious as instead of a scream, he gave out a deep, short sharp grunt._

_Immediately, Steph made a lunge for Jean-Ellen and everything happened at once. In slow motion and high speed. _

_Shouts, noises, more gun fire… then it was over. If anyone asked her what had happened she knew she would never be able to give a really accurate account. It had all happened in a blaze of guns and cordite smoke._

_Nearby Ranger was lying on his side with a bullet wound to his shoulder and Chico was now lying on his back in a pool of blood which was oozing from his mouth as wide open eyes stared back. Burrows was nowhere to be seen. Steph's gun was On the floor alongside a second 9mm Luger which moments earlier had been in Jean-Ellen's hand._

_Steph's biggest mistake had been to inadvertently pick up the wrong gun. _

_Just before Tank and Bobby rounded the building and raced to the scene._

_End flashback_

"Ok, go grab your purse, young lady. Time to hit the shops." Lucas said as he hauled himself out of his chair and off down the hallway.

Steph snapped out of her reverie as Delfia nodded her encouragement. Not wanting to tell Stephanie that they'd not actually defined what constituted 'the basics'.

Returning almost immediately now wearing his lightweight jacket and holding a set of car keys and was in the process of putting his wallet and phone in his pockets as Steph bent and kissed her daughter's head, ruffling her hair for good measure. "Be good for Delfia." She ordered softly.

Charlie grinned "I will, Mommy" she added, swinging her legs back and forth as she waved Bun bun's arm with a fork attached to it, around as she pretended to have him feed himself.

Taking a good look at her daughter and the woman she would have been proud to call 'Grandma' as Delfia shifted chairs to sit at Charlie's side, her heart felt relief. Relief that fate had put her in the path of the Garcias. It was clear to her that there was already a strong bond forming between herself, Charlie and these wonderful strangers. "But it's only temporary…" a little voice whispered inside her head. Shaking the thought away she took one more look at the scene before her and set off after Lucas.

Three hours later with the trunk of Lucas' chock full of stuff (including a 'couple' of toys and some colouring equipment for Charlie, as well as a bright red and black car seat which now sat proudly behind the driver's seat) they returned.

"Wow!" said Delfia, with a knowing grin as she stood on the porch with her arms folded "You've been busy."

"Don't!" Steph said with a look that said she was part pissed and part very relieved to have so many 'basics' again. "Damned man wouldn't stop. I went to the low cost option and he then went and picked the top of the line alternative. I could kill him, I really could." She added without any real heat to her voice.

Delfia just sniggered. She knew very well that Lucas liked to shop and never bought anything cheap. He had worked hard all his life and had all the trappings of a successful career as the now retired Chief of a large Police Department. He, rightly so, felt entitled to spend the money he'd made whenever he chose and it wasn't like he couldn't afford it. He just didn't often get the chance with his family spread all over the country.

Rodrigo, his eldest son, was based in LA with his boyfriend Raoul and owned a chain of highly successful beauty salons.

His next born, Elisa and her husband John were both cardiologists had three kids and lived in Cleveland Ohio.

And lastly Javier, who had married Ingrid last year was expecting twins. Geographically they were the closest as Javier was a Captain in the army, based out of Fort Worth.

He was close to all his children and their families and he missed them all like crazy.

o0o0o0o0o

**Still clear as mud?!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hi guys**

**Sorry for the confusion in ch 5 (now amended) where I said Lucas was married to Celia. Nope. He's married to Angela and if you pop over to my pinterest account you'll find the Garcia family tree under my fanfiction board - and a lot of answers too. Maybe...**

**Anyway, in honour of my birthday today, I'm sitting on the wonderful campsite at Montaigu De Quercy in France that we usually go to for the whole summer, (but this year it's a week due to the house development, kids, yada, yada, yada) with a large chunk of french bread slathered in blue berry jam, a bucket of mocha coffee and the sounds of a wood pigeon serenading me. The kids are comatosed in their tents and the sky is blue. Nearly perfect. Only thing missing is my hubby, stuck in England working ️**

**Hopefully you'll enjoy thus latest offering. going to the last for a couple of weeks due to house, kids... you get the idea**

**xxx**

o0o0o0o0o

Lester rolled back into Trenton bright and early on the Red Eye from Miami. He'd usually be in the gym anyway so it was no hardship to board a plane at about the same time instead.

His Tia Maria was having a surprise 60th birthday party later and he'd been drafted in by Team Garcia to move tables and other such large pieces of furniture around while Lula kept his Aunt distracted and out of the way by taking her out for the day to look at the final arrangements for her and Tank's wedding. Tia Maria was a smart woman and knew something was going on, but with Lula on board doing her thing she'd be totally engrossed in the wedding hurricane being orchestrated by the big black woman so they'd be able to put the finishing touches to her surprise party in relative peace and quiet.

Santos decided to volunteer his services before Celia even asked him to so he could still get his daily work out but as an added bonus he show off his guns and maybe just maybe persuade a particularly cute and recently graduated helper, (cough) next door neighbour Ana, (cough) to meet him later in one of Celia's many spare bedrooms…

His dick twitched in anticipation.

o0o0o0o0o

"Over here…er…no. I think, over there" Celia said shaking her head in confusion as she pointed to a different part of the large, shade dappled yard.

"You sure? It's not like I'm carrying something heavy or anything…" Lester grunted out as he readied himself to pick up the large sturdy, round table. Again.

"Sorry, Les. I think that's going to work better. Anyway, Ana's been watching you 'peacock' so…" She added with a giggle, eyebrow raise (yes, just the one) and a knowing look. Lester grinned back and flexed his guns before setting off with the large round oak table. Again.

Celia's phone rang so she grabbed in out of her pocket "Yo. Wassup?" she asked as she walked away to take the call.

At that moment two men rounded the edge of the large, three storey house that was Celia and her husband Edwardo's home and headed in her direction. The younger one, Trey split away and made a beeline for his brother Lester leaving a tall, older figure with snow white hair and an easy smile to continue his journey towards her. Finishing the call quickly she rushed to meet him half way.

"Tio!" she cried out as she grabbed him into a fierce hug. "How's tricks?" she added as she led him past the workers beavering away to set up the yard and onto the large decking before gesturing him inside to grab a drink.

"Oh, can't complain." He began, wandering round the large great room, Lucas stopped to look at the photos carefully placed to look casual while Celia delved into the fridge looking for cool drinks.

"Your wife is out running an errand right now. She'll be back later." Celia explained from deep within the fridge as he picked up and put down a couple of the frames.

There were photos he remembered well: family gatherings including Chico before he died; candid shots of Celia's kids. Ones of the whole extended family at the 'great meet' a couple of years before that. Memories of the whole Garcia clan with wide smiles, dubious haircuts and even more doubtful clothing choices.

And plenty he'd not seen before - after all, it had been a while. One in particular caught his eye. No, it couldn't be. Could it?

Picking it up Lucas stared at the couple in the photo. Carlos with his arms round a more filled out, longer haired version of a doppleganger of the woman in his mother's house, who was clearly holding a small bouquet of bridal flowers. He was wearing long cream shorts and an off white linen shirt that hung loosely over the top. She was in a gauzy, pale blue it was almost white, floaty dress that came to her ankles. They were on a beach, the sun was setting and they were gazing lovingly at each other.

Asked to take a lie detector test, he'd swear up and down that Carlos was Charlie's missing father…

"Oh crap! Sorry, should have put that away in case my brother decides to grace us with his presence - not that we want his mopey face here, tends to put a downer on things, ya know?" Celia added rhetorically as she pulled the frame gently from her uncle's hand and popped it carefully into a nearby drawer.

"Carlos got married again?" Lucas asked, clearly stunned at the revelation.

"Yeah, for about a minute. Steph was the best thing that happened to him. She was the woman who saved Julie from that weirdo pretending to be Carlos. Do you remember that?"

Lucas nodded his head. It had been all over the papers – Julie kidnapped by a Carlos wannabe. A female colleague had stepped in to help and between the pair of them they'd rescued her.

"They finally got their act together " Lucas' sorta niece or was it second cousin? Maybe first cousin once removed? – whatever, he mused – continued.

"They'd known each other for years but it was complicated – and once they'd realised they couldn't live without each other they hopped onto a plane and went off to Hawaii and got married. First and last we heard was that photo. They split up not long after, less than a year I think if memory serves me right. Les said it was ug-lee but wouldn't go into further detail. Not sure he knew them but if he did he wasn't sharing. Anyways… I always hoped they'd get back together, she was so good for him and they seemed genuinely in love. I keep it out to remind me that even though he seems lost these days, he once loved. And loved deeply."

Lucas nodded quietly. "What ever happened to her?"

Celia shrugged "Not sure. Les muttered something about her being thrown out of the building with only a few belongings in full view of the people that worked there. It all happened just after Chico died."

"Ouch."

"Yeah, ouch. My brother never does anything by half. He must have had his reasons but even for him, that was a shitty thing to do."

Lucas nodded with a thoughtful look on his face.

"You know something, don't you?" She stated.

"Nope." Came the unconvincing reply.

Before Celia could probe any deeper, one of the band members wandered in, looking for an extension cable and the moment for further questioning was lost.

Lucas set off determinedly to make a phone call to a man who owed him a favour…

o0o0o

Ranger looked at his watch and sighed. From his base of operations at the house Steph had dubbed the Bat Cave, he had begun his search but he had scant few details to go on. She'd ditched her Honda Civic – her latest POS (they'd all laughed when she insisted there was no point in buying anything worth having and had pitched up with it a few weeks earlier, much to the Merry Men's delight and Ranger's exasperated "Babe") at the first car dealership she'd come to. Swapping it out for an equally dubious but more generic Ford Focus. It had taken him a few days to find this latest car but by then it had been traded in again and the trail went cold as she'd boarded a greyhound bus to Chicago. After that, it was as if she'd never lived. Stephanie Michelle Manoso, neé Plum had gone to ground.

Last week when he'd told the core team that he intended to search her out, Les, Tank and Bobby had confessed that they'd tried to find her as soon as he'd left to into the wind, but they too had hit a dead end, even with Hector running traces through everything he could hack into. Although they had all been impressed with her ability to use their skills against them, right now, he'd have given his right arm to find her and tell her to her face how wrong he'd been.

_Flashback_

_A couple of months after Steph had fled Rangeman, Ranger had returned from his latest mission and desperate for reassurance that he'd done the right thing by Chico he visited Jean Ellen Burrow's two bed bolt hole in the Pine Barrens…_

"_What do you mean, you're glad she's gone?" he growled out as they stood face to face in the small kitchen. Carefully putting her ice cold glass of white wine down she wrapped her arms round his torso and kissed the perfect mocha latte skin that peeked out from above the black fabric of his open necked shirt._

"_Hmm? Oh? I'm glad that I finally get you to myself, is all." She smiled out nonchalantly as she suggestively dragged the ends of her nails slowly down his back and round the front before beginning to undo the buttons that were now in front of her perfectly manicured fingers. "She was only in the way." She cooed as she kissed the skin she was revealing._

_Ranger stilled her hands and looked down at Jean-Ellen. "Pardon?" he whispered out, the softness hiding the danger behind his question._

"_Oh Carlos! She was no good for you, can't you see? We make a much better team. She was a danger magnet and was never good enough for you. You need someone who matches you. Not just in the bedroom but in your life too. I'd always known what you did not seem to realise. We __are__ the perfect partnership but that last mission we did together? It was then I knew. We were more than good together. You are my soulmate and…"_

"_And what?" _

"_She had to go…"_

"…_The only reason she's gone is because of Chico, not because of you. I loved her more than anything I have ever loved and yet she betrayed me. In the worst possible way. Chico was my brother and now he's dead. Because of her." He spat out, pushing her away from him, even as he unconsciously rubbed the scar on his shoulder from that night._

"_What! What?" Jean ground out, her eyes narrowing as she processed what he'd just said. "You are mine, Ranger. Mine! She was never good enough for you!" she added as she began to scowl. This day was not going how she planned, but she would pull things back. The beautiful black soul before her was hers and determination was written all over her face._

"_I don't know what you or your stupid brother saw in her but for some reason he adored her too. It was her fault that he died on those tracks…"_

_Ranger suddenly stopped. He'd not told Jean about the disused railway line where Chico had died. How did she know? Clarity hit him like a wrecking ball. Somehow Jean had been involved. Grabbing her by the shoulders he shook her hard enough to make her teeth rattle. "How do you know where she died?"_

"_You told me."_

"_Wrong answer. Try… again…"_

_Two days later he trashed the gym at Rangeman._

_End flashback_

o0o0o0o0o

Hector grinned as he rubbed his hands in delight at the news, moments earlier, Lucas Garcia had imparted then turned to his programs and began his search for Stephanie Maria Richardson, DoB 10th August 1985. Sitting back to wait for the results for the first time in three years he felt hope. Hope that he'd finally found his Angelita.

About an hour before Estephania was thrown out of the building, Hector had been playing with a new piece of parabolic software that allowed him to listen to anything within a certain range, using the LAN within the building as the signal provider. He'd put out a company wide test and had been surprised that he was suddenly listening to the conversation, strike that, shitfest yelling match that Ranger was raining down on Steph in their apartment. To this day, he doubted either party were aware that he knew what had been accused. Even if he never heard Ranger in all his powerful glory issuing his powerful and cutting accusations nor her pathetic, futile attempts to provide uncertain answers again, it would be etched on his brain till the day he died. He'd only heard of how Ranger could be and he knew she had never witnessed anything like it before, but the whole thing had been hideous to listen to and her attempts to defend herself had broken his heart.

But now? Now he finally had a chance to rectify at least some of the damage. If he could only find her and bring her home.

Despite all that had happened and the conflict it had created within him, he was still duty and honour bound to Ranger so had stayed at Rangeman, even though part of him wanted to help her run away. But if he could find a way to get the pair of them into a room he would gladly do it so they could revisit the conversation in light of how they'd both coped in the last three years.

Just as the results came through his phone rang. It was Ranger.

"Yo."

"Back at you. Have your engines turned anything up yet?"

Looking down at the results that showed a 99.999% positive match between Stephanie Richardson and Stephanie Manoso. Even as he looked at the most recent picture of his angel, resting in bed with a tiny bundle wearing a pink cap in her arms, his reply was an emphatic.

"No"

o0o0o0o0o

**So there you have it. The bones of what happened... is there a chance they could get back together? How will Ranger react to having another daughter? Will Hector save the day... SO. MANY. POSSIBILITES...**

**You know me though, it aint gonna happen in just a few short chapters...**

**(insert evil laughter)**


	8. Chapter 8

**Sorry for taking so long to post the next chapter – the building works start on Monday so we've been busy packing up and bit by bit moving to a friend's house to house sit for a few months. Needless to say I can't find anything, let alone a quiet moment to gather my thoughts and do any editing!**

**Anyway, as usual you've humbled me with your amazing comments and I hope you enjoy this chapter – taken from Ranger's POV.**

**Lots of love**

**Sarah (AKA scary box lady – you stand still long enough, I'll put you in a box…)**

**PS...**

**As I mentioned, I'm struggling with keeping a tabs on the house move and, after reading some of your reviews have realised this this is not the only part of my life in chaos! Thank you to everyone that spotted the following inconsistencies!**

**To set things straight (the appropriate chapters have been amended - said she hopefully):**

**1) Ranger slunk off early at Chico's funeral after watching from so far back no one saw him there (except his Mom)**

**2) It's Tia Maria's (Mama Manoso – Ranger's Mom) surprise 60th birthday party**

**3) There is no Carmen - it was a name I used then binned for Mama Manoso and hopefully is gone now, just like JEB**

**Big fat SORRY for the confusion (I blame it on the boxes...) I do make mistakes (most of my stories have little itty bitty consistences, but this one! Gah!**

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger POV:

Waking up with a start, covered in sweat, the strands of an evening of love, laughter and dancing with his Babe in his arms floating out of the peripherals of his mind Ranger came to with a large sob.

The images from his dream seemed to be coming into focus in soundbites. The feel of her skin in his arms, her breath on his neck, her hair tickling his nose, her body moulded against his own. Her smiling eyes and soft laughter as they mimed the lyrics to 'Senorita' By Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello.

As he rolled onto his back and let out a wobbly sigh, his arms physically ached for her loss. And his heart, well hurt was an understatement.

How had he believed Jean Ellen? How on earth had he allowed her to take over his sanity? What had he been thinking? He'd had several heated arguments with Chico about the role of Burrows in his life and he'd accused his baby brother of having the hots for his wife.

_Flashback_

"_Leave it, Chico…" he warned softly, menacingly from behind his desk. Warning tones which his brother ignored._

"_You have a wonderful wife who loves you very much, Ric." Chico stated, emphasising his comment by leaning his 5 ft 11" perfectly toned frame over the top of the desk that separated them. "Yet you seem to prefer the company of that _skank _over her. What are you thinking?" He asked slamming his open palm down on the warm wood top, making everything jump._

_One thing Chico never was was afraid of his big brother. In awe? Yes. Full of pride for his many sacrifices and the rep that he had gained in special forces? Hell yeah. Scared of the hell he could unleash if he was pushed too hard? Perhaps – except when it came to calling him out for being a complete asshole. When in full rhino mode he could outperform Lula…_

_And had Mama Manoso's flare for the dramatics._

"_I _said_ leave it…" Ranger repeated, shooting warning glares at his brother as he rose so that they were on equal footing._

"_What is it that Burrows holds over you?" Chico needled. "Are you completely blind to the way she looks at you? She wants you for herself Big Bro! I can see it, the team can see it and I'd bet my last shekel that Steph can see it…"_

"_We're work colleagues, nothing more." He ground out. "I shouldn't have to justify my actions to you." He added harshly._

"_You think? You think! Exactly what is it you're working on? I've seen the rosters. There's nothing scheduled that would require you to spend so much time with her."_

"_We're working on something that's above your pay grade, Baby brother." _

"_Really? Because the way I see it she's gotten her claws into you so deep you can't see what's right in front of you."_

"_For the last time, will you fucking leave it."_

"_If you break Steph's heart, I'll kill you. She deserves better than to have her heart trampled by that… that _slut_. Coming in here parading round as if she owns the place! Steph can see it, why can't you? Why can't you see that that woman would tear your wife's heart out and eat it for breakfast without blinking. She deserves better than that, Man."_

"_Leave Stephanie out of this…"_

"_or what? And what's with _Stephanie_? I thought she was _Babe_?!"_

"_We've hit a patch…"_

"_I'd say you have! That patch is a pile of shit called Jeanne Ellen Burrows…"_

"_Enough!" Ranger yelled out. "what is my wife to you anyway? Not that it's any business of yours." He added, now pacing round Chico. "You've got the hots for her, haven't you? Are you circling my wife?!"_

"_I love your wife like a sister for crying out loud! Fucking hell, Ranger! The whole of your contact list loves her like a sister, daughter, Step Mom, best friend, Auntie! We all want what's best for her and the best for her is for you to come to your senses and tell Burrows to go climb back under the rock she crawled out of."_

"_For the last time, Jean Ellen is a work colleague! There is nothing going on between us!"_

"_Grow up, Ric! Drop the skank and look after your Babe before you break her heart or she realises what a fool you are and looks elsewhere…"_

_Ranger stopped in his tracks at the last comment. "What do you mean by that?"_

"_Nothing. Yet. But you keep hurting the one person who has your six more than Tank it won't be long before she leaves you for dust. I know I would. I'd want to protect myself, scoop up my battered dignity and leave you while I still could. Hell, I'd help her pack."_

"_If you so much as …"_

_Turning to leave, Chico let fly one final statement "There's a line of people waiting to step up and protect her, help her, Ric and I'm at the top of it." He added, flinging the door open so hard that it crashed into the wall, exploding off a lump of drywall and leaving._

_Jean Ellen, her hand raised as if to knock, stepped out of the way, shock on her face. "You ok?" She asked, rushing to his side and running her hand down his upper arm in a supportive gesture._

"_Yeah, never better." He replied as he glared at the back of his rapidly disappearing brother, completely unaware of the woman at his side and her ministrations._

_End flashback_

How prophetic Chico's words had turned out to be.

With clarity that only comes from having removed the blinders he'd been wearing concerning Burrows and having ALL the facts in front of him, he'd finally laid out the jigsaw pieces and seen exactly what _had_ been going on, not what he'd _thought_ had been going on.

Now that Burrows was literally buried under the rock that she'd crawled out from under, he'd taken a long hard look at the events that had led to his babe's departure and he'd never been more ashamed of himself.

Because of his actions, Chico was dead. Too ashamed at the time of the role he thought his wife had had in the whole fiasco, he'd secretly watched the funeral from far enough away that no one had seen him and had left immediately the'd started to lower the coffin into the ground. He had yet to visit the grave.

Because of his actions, he had a list as long as his arm of people that he'd needed to apologise to. Members of his family – both by blood and oath that he needed to atone to.

Because of his actions, his life, his love was gone and he needed to find her and put her straight. Apologies would not be enough, but it would be a start.

Thank God they'd not had time to have any children – something he'd always secretly dreamt about while waiting for her to be done with the cop. Many a night, hunkered down in shitsville on a mission he'd wondered if they'd look like Julie or would have Steph's wild curls and attitude. They'd yet to have that conversation when Burrows strutted onto the scene and things had rapidly turned upside down, putting any thoughts he might have had on the subject back into their box, stuffed far back in the corners of his mind.

They'd had more than one evening of wild make up sex in the weeks before she left. One particular night came to mind when they'd made love all night. Fast and furious make up sex had turned into soft, devoted physical displays of sentiments too deep, too profound for them to explain with words. Dawn had broken before they finally drifted off to sleep in each other's arms fearful of the reality that lurked in the sidelines waiting to attack their world and shatter it into tiny pieces. Little did they both know that just a few weeks later she'd be gone.

Fluffing up one of the four down pillows on his vast bed to make a more comfortable shape, he pulled it into his body, pretending to be a sleepy Steph, mimicking the way she used to grab his pillow, drink in his smell and go back to sleep while he went down to work out in the gym.

What he wouldn't give for it to be real. Shaking the image of his gorgeous Babe, rumpled from a nightime's activities and all soft and sleepy, from his head he started to mentally catalogue the week ahead.

Sunday was Tank and Lula's wedding day and he was absolutely determined to stand up and be the best man God have ever put on this earth. It was the least he could do to for the man who'd held him together and kept Rangeman running even as he tried to self destruct.

Monda… Damn! How could he forget, Saturday was his Mama's surprise birthday party and he'd promised Celia that he'd be there. How on earth had he forgotten?! Talk about not being aware of his surroundings...

He needed to find a gift, and fast.

o0o0o0o0o

**So there we have it... another piece of the jigsaw. Will they meet up at the party, hmmm?**


	9. Chapter 9

**OMG! The last few weeks have been manic and I'm only just getting everything back on track. Sadly it's meant that I've had to prioritise and although I agree that you should all come top of my list, somehow I'm not sure my family, the builders, my students etc would agree. :-(**

**I've also updated chapter 8 and added the comment below but for those of you who don't want to go back, I've repeated it again!**

**Thank you to everyone that spotted the following inconsistencies!**

**To set things straight (the appropriate chapters have been amended - said she hopefully):**

**1) Ranger slunk off early at Chico's funeral after watching from so far back no one saw him there (except his Mom)**

**2) It's Tia Maria's (Mama Manoso – Ranger's Mom) surprise 60th birthday party**

**3) There is no Carmen - it was a name I used then binned for Mama Manoso and hopefully is gone now, just like JEB**

**Big fat SORRY for the confusion (I blame it on the boxes...) I do make mistakes (most of my stories have little itty bitty consistences, but this one! Gah! **

o0o0o0o0o

Delfia's POV

Interesting, she thought as she returned to putting away the last of the supper dishes and loading the dishwasher.

Stephanie was putting Charlie to bed and almost as she'd left the room her phone had rung.

_Flashback:_

"_Are you alone right now?" Lucas had asked._

"_Why hello to you too, Son."_

"_Sorry Mama but, I only have a couple of minutes - are you alone?"_

_Knitting her brows in confusion and taking a long glance at the kitchen door she replied "yes… what's the problem."_

"_Oh, no problem but I think I might have worked out who Stephanie's husband is, was? Whatever."_

_Delfia gasped. "Who?" she whispered nervously as her hand moved to her throat in fear._

"_Carlos Manoso."_

_Delfia gasped again. "Lucas! Are you suuuure?"_

"_About 99.9% positive. Or so Hector tells me. I was talking to Celia and browsing the photos in her great room when I came across Carlos and a girl who looked remarkably like our little lost girl on a beach. It was a wedding photo and even through the camera lens I could feel the love. Hector ran a couple of searches for me based on the information Stephanie gave for her insurance and hey presto… she's changed her identity but it's absolutely irrefutable. Ranger is Charlie's father. I don't know how I didn't see if before, but that little girl is the perfect blend of the two of them."_

"_What do you want to do with this information?"_

"_Right now, I'm not sure. Stephanie is hiding for a reason and Celia did tell me that the split was ugly so there's obviously something nasty that went down. I was thinking that I'd have a chat with Angela later when we've finished everything for tomorrow and can head off to bed and go from there. _

"_Lester's here and he's the biggest gossip of the lot, maybe he can spill something – that's if Carlos doesn't come. If he does turn up I can always pursue that avenue later."_

"_Good thinking. I really like Stephanie and Charlie is absolutely adorable. I can feel in my bones that we need to help her so maybe I'll have a little chat with her when she gets done with putting the little poppet to bed, see if I can get her to open up a little bit more. I don't know that she'll want anything to do with Carlos, she's clearly still very upset about what happened, but maybe given time she'd at least tell him about their daughter."_

"_Sounds like a plan but at this stage I don't think we tell her that know about their relationship. I'd hate for us to persuade Stephanie to talk to him and for him to brush her off. We don't know what happened and until we do, I think we tread very carefully."_

"_Oh mi hijo, I totally agree. Despite time, Stephanie is still very raw and she needs to heal before we could even bring this up. I think this will be a long term project."_

"_You're not wrong Mama! Shoot, Les is wandering in this direction, gotta go! Give my love to everyone at your end."_

"_Will do, have fun and see you tomorrow!"_

"_I'll pick you up from the airport. Let me know when you board."_

_End flashback_

Steph wandered into the kitchen and blew out a soft sigh of relief as she stopped for a moment and watched the incredible woman who'd put so much faith in her and who was currently wiping the marble counter tops down.

"My favourite part of the day is when I get Charlie ready for bed." She explained as she padded further into the cavernous yet somehow home cosy room wearing pale grey lightweight jogging pants, a pale pink strappy top and brightly coloured snuggly socks. Delfia looked up and smiled and with a look encouraged her to continue as she finished up her task.

"Seeing my soft and sleepy little angel's smile as she hugs Bunbun makes my heart soar. Regardless of how tired I am and whether we've had a good day or not, seeing her little lips pout as she fights sleep and her eyes flutter to closed chases away my demons, even if only for a few minutes. She's a constant reminder of Ray… her father and that will always be a painful thing. I loved him so much and despite everything I always will. Charlie is the best of both of us…"

Steph's sentence just floated away and it was obvious she wasn't going to discuss the subject any more. It was also obvious that she was still very much in love with him.

Delfia put her cloth on the drainer then glided closer and ran her hand down her arm, but once she'd seen the tears that were threatening to fall, she gently pulled her into her arms and cradled her as Steph lost her battle with the tears and wept.

Stroking her hair gently, she whispered platitudes in Spanish to try and calm the crying woman even as she vowed to get to the bottom of this terribly sad mess and do her best to help heal Stephanie's heart.

o0o0o0o0o

Frank put the phone down on the table then and plonked himself down heavily onto the attached padded bench before leaning forward, putting his head in his hands and weeping with relief.

Confused by the noise, Helen came running into the hallway and sunk to her knees by his feet. "Frank? Frank! What is it, what's the matter. You're scaring me!" she asked, heart in her mouth and tears in her eyes as she looked at the apparently broken man in front of her.

"Oh my God! It's Stephanie! They've found her body, haven't they? Oh please tell me it's not true! It can't be true! My baby! Oh Frank…" she wept, clinging to his legs as painful sobs wracked her body.

"I'm sorry… I didn't mean to frighten you!" he replied calming down enough to sputter the words out, suddenly realising how it must look. Changing his position he scooped her up in his arms. "It's not what you think, Dear! Hector has found her, but she's alive! OH MY GOD, HELEN, SHE'S _ALIVE_!"

"Wh…what? She's… where is she? I need to see her! Is she ok? Where is she? What's happened to my baby? I need to see her…"

"Shh… it'll be all be alright." He added as reassuringly as he could as they clung to each other like drowning sailors. "I don't have many details, but Hector tells me she's safe and well. She doesn't know that she's been found so we won't be able to see her straight away. She's in a safe place and is doing ok. He couldn't, or wouldn't tell me any more but he wanted to know that she was alive."

Helen nodded even as she wiped her hands over her face, then through her hair to try and tame the curls that had escaped the confines of her pony tail. "She's alive, Frank! She's… oh my baby…"

"I know… I know." He replied as he pulled her back into his arms. Stephanie Manoso, nee Plum was alive and ok. That would do …for now.

They'd waited a smidge under three and a quarter years for this day to come. They'd could wait a bit longer for the rest. She was alive and that was all that mattered.

o0o0o0o0o

Hector smiled the smile of a very contented man. Three years 1 month and 22 days after her disappearance, his Angelita had resurfaced and he'd been able to tell her father that she'd been found. Admittedly, there was not a lot else he felt comfortable sharing, after all, Steph needed to introduce Charlie to her maternal family in her own time, but it had felt really, really good to be able to put hope back into her parents' hearts.

For the first few months after she disappeared, Frank had phoned him daily to see if there was any news. Then as time had marched on, it grew too painful to hear that there was nothing to report, so the daily calls turned to weekly, monthly and finally quarterly. The more time lapsed the less hopeful Frank had become and Hector's heart broke a little more each time he was unable to tell him anything.

Being able to call him with the news that she'd been found had been wonderful. He just hoped that in time Estephania would decide to meet up with him and come home. He knew that it would be a while till he could contact her but he was hoping he would be the first person she would agree to meet with (if it was Lester he was going to be very pissed) and they could start the long process of being the light of Rangeman home.

He wasn't naïve, there were a lot of things that would need to be fixed that right now seemed so broken and things would never be the same again. But that didn't matter and perhaps, just perhaps enough water had gone under the bridge that there was the slightest chance of reconciliation. After all, life was too short and even more precious. Leaning back in his chair and pressing the padded leather backwards so he could look up to the ceiling, he laced his fingers behind his head and thought about all the crappy things that needed fixing.

Steph's parents had said a few things they day before she's left that they still regretted. Neither had spoken to nor allowed Ranger over the threshold since the day she'd disappeared.

Lester and Bobby felt they should have stopped her and taken her to a safe house until everything died down then talked Ranger down from whatever had pushed him over the edge and locked them in a room together.

Tank hated that he'd only just managed to keep Ranger sane and almost had survivor's guilt for being so happy with Lula.

Lula, Connie and Mary Lou boycotted and hated most of Rangeman and especially Ranger for the terrible way they'd treated Steph.

Angelita never got to say goodbye to her beloved Grandma Mazur.

He himself felt that he should have done more to track her down and should never have given up hope, just like Frank Plum.

But in spite of the impossible list he'd just created, he felt hope. The first time in a long, long three years, he felt there was a chance that things would work out. And something told him that a certain little bundle with a tiny pink cap on her head may yet be the miracle they all needed.

**o0o0o0o0o**

**Please don't hate me for taking so long to update! Love ya xoxoxox**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hi guys**

**Sorry for the late update but we've been having problems with one of our neighbours and the constant to-ing and fro-ing between ours and their surveyors is doing my head in! Last year they knocked down the existing bungalow on their plot and replaced it with a large imposing 5 bed house. We rolled over regarding the mess, chaos, lack of access due to rubble that seeped onto our drive etc, etc and just let them get on with it. Now the roles are reversed, they're being ultra difficult. Sigh. As a result my muse disappeared and took my tweaking skills with her. Grrr.**

**Anyway, she slunk back in this morning so I thought I'd better get this chapter posted before she goes AWOL again!**

**You know the drill, read, enjoy and send me the love xox**

**o0o0o0o0o**

"Would you like to talk about it?" Delfia asked once Steph's tears started to subside. "I mean, that is if you want to. I'm a good listener." She added gently as she patted her hand reassuringly.

Steph nodded before leading Delfia gently into the snug just off the kitchen, and pulling her down beside her onto the couch. Her spidey senses were telling her to trust this almost stranger and something was urging her to open up.

Taking a deep breath, she began to tell her story, all the while looking directly into Delfia's warm and comforting eyes.

"About eight years ago I was made redundant from my job." She started. "I didn't know how to tell my parents so ignored my mounting debts and it wasn't until my car was repossessed while I was having dinner at their house that I had to own up to what was going on. My parents live in a very close knit community in Trenton, New Jersey where everyone knows everyone and my Dad mentioned that he'd heard that my cousin was looking for a filing clerk so the next day I went to see him. He owns a Bail Bonds company but when I got there the position was filled. Long and the short of it, I blackmailed him into giving me a job for which I was totally unqualified."

Delfia raised her eyebrows and nodded her head slightly, urging her to continue.

"He allowed me to sign up as one of his bounty hunters, bit like Dog? The Bounty Hunter? They go after people who are out on bail but don't show up for their court case."

Looking startled, Delfia blinked as she thought about what Steph was telling her and the ramifications of pretending that she didn't know about her marriage to Carlos. She knew she needed to keep building up Stephanie's trust in her and Lucas. But what to do? On one hand, if she found out later that they'd known practically all along that she was Mrs Manoso she'd never forgive them for lying by omission. On the other hand, would she trust them not to say anything to Carlos?

Oblivious to the inner turmoil that Delfia was going through Steph continued.

"I was so out of my depth that the office manager pulled in a favour and got one of her existing contacts to give me some training. He's the best of the best, former Army Ranger and Black Ops operative and heads up his own security firm, Rangeman. Some years later, after a lot of false starts and a complicated love triangle we got married."

Before her brain engaged, Delfia's mouth opened "Oh my God! You're the colleague who saved Julie, aren't you?!"

Steph looked stunned, "you…you know about the Scrog incident?!"

Delfia nodded and taking a deep breath, with a 'I can't fuck this up any more than I already have so I've nothing to lose' attitude, she nodded. "The Manoso's are a part of the Garcia family. My niece, Maria Garcia married Enrique Manoso. Carlos is their third born."

Steph stood up abruptly. "This changes things, I.. I... I _can't_ stay here, I have to leave!" she stumbled out even as tears started to well up. "I never should have…"

Delfia could see that she was about to bolt so immediately stood up and grabbed one of her flailing arms to stop her from leaving the room.

"Stephanie…Stephanie!" she commanded with her best Mom voice. The one that says 'look at me when I'm talking to you'.

Steph slowed down long enough for Delfia to grab her other hand and gently but firmly pull her round so that they were looking at each other. "He doesn't know you're here! I _promise_!" she explained fervently. "He won't hear that we've found you from me and he won't hear it from Lucas either. Understand?"

Steph nodded woodenly, even as her eyes flitted from side to side in panic.

"Come. Sit" Delfia commanded gently as she pulled Steph back down onto the sofa. "I promise, pinky promise, that unless you tell me otherwise, I will not let Carlos know you're here." She stuck out her little finger and hooked it round one of Steph's. "I promise." She stated with a determined look. Steph nodded back mutely and they dipped their hands a couple of times in a sort of handshake.

"Now." Delfia began with a mischievous glint in her eye. "I don't know about you but if we're going to continue with this conversation I need ice cream and booze. What do you say?"

Realising that Delfia meant every word of her promise, Steph nodded tentatively. "Do you have any phish food?" she asked hopefully.

"No, but I've got half baked."

Steph giggled wryly and shook her head. "Thank you." She added with a wobbly chin as the tears threatened to fall again.

"What for?" asked a confused Delfia as she stood up, holding her hand out for Steph to catch. As far as she was concerned, it was written in tablets of stone that these were the go to foods and when combined with a listening girlfriend would help enormously.

This situation was serious enough that this was the only solution - just like when her husband died.

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger pulled up at his sister's house early the next morning. He'd figured it would be the ultimate distraction and take his mind off his frustration at the negative news Hector had given him yesterday. He decided it would be better to lose himself in mindless tasks and do something worthwhile rather than stew at the Batcave on his own.

Parking a few houses down from his sister's he angled out of his rental car and headed up the front path to the imposing arched double front doors complete with elegant black wrought iron vines and obscure glass which provided additional elegance to an already imposing and beautiful 6 bed Tudor style home.

The Porsche was in the garage having upgrades done and he knew his mother would notice any of the fleet cars so he'd chosen a Mini Cooper in British Racing Green. Mama Manoso would never expect him to drive something so small and he had to admit it had been enormous fun as it had been like driving a souped up roller skate.

Dropping the heavy brass striker of the lafayette style door knocker he listened to the sound of approaching feet but was surprised that when it opened it was his Tio Lucas who standing on the other side. "Carlos! Wasn't sure if you were going to make it." The older man said happily as he waved him in.

"Tio, good to see you. How are the plans for tonight going? Thought I'd come and add some muscle to the proceedings." Ranger replied as he pulled him in for a back slapping man hug.

"Celia was taking bets on you cancelling." He added with a chuckle and a friendly slap on his back as he led him into the kitchen then bi-passed him and wandered over to the breakfast bar where he sat back down next to Angela, his wife.

Ranger rolled his eyes at his uncle's comment before adding his own. "Yeah well, thought I'd surprise her as well as Mama. Tia." Ranger added with a nod and a smile as he headed over to the coffee machine, opened the cupboard above to grab a large cup then helped himself to a generous mug full from the jug that was sitting on its warming plate. "How's things?" he asked as he settled onto a bar stool and took a large swig.

"Oh, can't complain." Lucas replied.

"Same old, same old." Added Angela happily, between bites from her plate.

"Celia tells me you got married." Lucas said innocently, curious to see the reaction.

"Yeah well, didn't work out." Ranger replied nonchalantly even as a flicker of pain crossed his face.

"Oh? Shame. Sorry to hear it."

"So, what needs doing today?" Ranger asked, effectively changing the subject.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph woke with a start when a little body launched itself at her. Letting out an exaggerated "oomph" she caught her daughter then rolled her over and began to tickle her mercilessly, ignoring the slightly unsettled stomach and pounding head that last night's drinking had kindly left her with. She should have known better than to have a hangover with a two year old, she thought even as she grasped a tiny, perfectly formed foot and began to tickle it.

From the kitchen, Delfia grinned as she drank down two Advil tablets to calm the jackhammers in her head and she listened to the squeals and giggles that only a child can make. It warmed her heart that Charlie was so carefree. A true testament to the wonderful start her mother had somehow managed to give the child, despite the awful situation they'd landed in.

Nursing her temples she dropped the empty Ben & Jerry cartons and wine bottles into their respective recycling bins under the sink then sank onto one of the kitchen chairs with a cup of coffee and some buttered toast with honey.

The squeals of laughter were abating so she figured she probably only had a couple of minutes before Hurricane Charlie blasted into the room and while she waited she thought over some of the rest of the conversation her and Stephanie had had the night before.

_Flashback:_

"_So. Let me get this right. This Burrows woman was stirring a huge pile of trouble, trying to turn the core team against you and at the same time she was also trying to steal Carlos?"_

"_Essentially, yes."_

"_But how? I don't know much about Carlos' life but I do know he was always a good and honourable man. How could he not see what was happening?"_

"_Therein lies the 64 million dollar question. For some reason she had gotten her claws into him and he couldn't see it."_

"_Didn't the core team take him up on it? You say Chico worked with you all. Didn't he say something?"_

"_Apparently he tried, they all did actually – none of them trusted that woman and could see through her totally. All Ranger kept saying was that the project the pair of them were involved in was highly classified and would secure Rangeman's future for many years to come. _

_"Chico came up with a crazy harebrained scheme to get her to show her true colours." Steph added before taking a steadying breath and a sip of wine "that was the night she killed him and somehow it was my fault. Ranger wouldn't believe she'd been at the scene of the crime and he blamed me and my poor gun skills for shooting him in the shoulder and killing Chico. I fired one shot – at her - but just missed her and she was the one who fired the rest."_

"_Oh dear!" Delfia exclaimed before taking a large swig of the chenin blanc she'd poured out earlier. "But surely the evidence was in front of him. There were two guns, yes? And Burrows' prints were on one, surely?" She added as she reached for her spoon and dug into her ice cream._

"_No, somehow only one gun was recovered – the one I picked up which only had my finger prints on so I guess she must have been wearing gloves. I had cordite on my hand and clothes and as there was no-one else there when Ranger came to and no-one saw her leave there was nothing to link her to the scene of the crime. Trouble was I was too concerned about Chico and Ranger's injuries so part of the whole fiasco is a complete blur. Basically I was caught apparently red handed and accused of something that I absolutely didn't do. That was the beginning of the end for the pair of us. The look that woman gave me when Ranger threw me out was one I'll never forget. She was so smug…"_

"… _and I bet neither Carlos nor the rest of the team saw her expression?"_

"_No, she was pulling into the garage just as I high tailed it out of there."_

"_Oh. Oh dear…"_

"_Yeah. My thoughts exactly."_

_End flashback_

At that moment a unicorn clad, onesie wearing blur raced into the kitchen and dumped itself in Delfia's lap.

"Oh my goodness!" Delfia said with a huge grin on her face and mock surprise in her voice. "I didn't know we had any unicorns in the house!"

Charlie giggled then grabbed her cheeks between her small hands and rained kisses over her face. "Mommy tolded me you an her ated somefink nasty last night. Mommy's got a poorly tummy. Have you too, Abuela?"

Delfia took a large gulp of air. Had Charlie just called her Grandmother?!

"You ok? Abuela?" Charlie asked, looking at the shock written all over Delfia's face.

"Oh precious child!" she said with a barely audible sob. "I'm not your Grandmother, but I would so like to be." She added as she smoothed Charlie's hair down and cupped her face. "I'd be honoured if you would call me Abuela."

Charlie looked pleased with the way their conversation had gone and turned to more practical things as only a small person can do. "Can I have pancates pease?!"

"Of course! Blueberry or chocolate chip?"

"Blubry pease. I love fruit." She added happily as she gave Delfia a big squeeze.

As the hug was finishing, she opened her eyes to see Stephanie with her arms wrapped round her torso, leaning against the door jam with tears of joy in her eyes. Motioning her over, Delfia pulled Steph into a group hug and the two women drank in each other's strength.

o0o0o0o0o

"I'm off then, Stephanie." Delfia yelled down the light and spacious hallway a couple of hours later as she picked up her carry on case from where she'd left in earlier near the front door.

Just as she started to head towards the door Steph arrived "Here, let me take that." she insisted as she gently pulled the small rolling bag out of Delfia's hands, Charlie hot on her heels.

"Be good Abuela." Charlie added solemnly "Don't pass on your poorly tummy." She added as she hugged Delfia's cropped pant covered legs.

"I'll try not to." She replied, giving Steph a knowing grin which she returned with a small giggle.

Just at that moment a taxi tooted outside and they all headed out onto the front drive.

"Be good for Mommy, Cherub." Delfia added as she reached down and patted the halo of curls that had wrapped itself round her leg again.

Giving Steph a 'Mom' look she added "Don't worry about anything while I'm away. Treat the place like your own. Please."

Steph nodded in thanks and headed to the trunk which was now open and waiting for the case to be placed inside.

"See you in a couple of days, girls." Delfia added as she stepped inside the Toyota Camry with a wide smile. As she gave a large wave of her hand the vehicle drove away.

The pair watched, waving until the car had turned the corner then headed back inside the house.

"What we gonna do now, Mommy?" Charlie asked.

"Something I should have done a long time ago." Steph said, sadly. "I'm going to show you some pictures of your Daddy."

o0o0o0o0o

**So there we have it. Ranger is still in the dark, but Steph is warming up to the idea that at some point they are going to meet...**

**Gulp...**


	11. Chapter 11

**Hi Guys**

**I'm afraid this chapter is a bit short, but VERY sweet and it stops just where it needs to (so no whinging about the chapter's length, ok?!)**

**Or does it?! **

**hmmm?**

o0o0o0o0o

Mama Manoso's party was in full swing now that the guest of honour had arrived and people were dancing to the music from the live band while they waited for the food to be served. Canapes had been handed round in generous quantity already so hoards of the guests had rushed to the temporary dance floor in an attempt to use up some calories so they wouldn't feel guilty when they hit the buffet later.

While the music pulsed and throbbed and bodies gyrated and undulated in time with a lively salsa, Ranger, swigging from his beer bottle periodically and looked on stoically.

"How's it hangin', Batman?" Lula asked as she wandered over, disturbing his silent vigil.

She'd been standing with Tank and Les and the three of them had been surreptitiously watching him for a few minutes before she decided to go and annoy him. As far as she was concerned, he needed to get the stick outta his ass and chill. Pining for his Babe was not going to bring her back and while she was pissed at how White Girl had fallen off the face of the planet, she completely understood her need to disappear. Didn't mean she didn't miss her though.

Ranger turned his face to look her and studied her blankly before taking a long pull of his beer and turning back to his audience.

Ignoring his indifference she tried again. "I miss her too." She whispered even as she slid her hand round his and squeezed gently.

Startled by the revelation and the fact that someone was actually touching him for the first time in a very long time, he squeezed back and whispered almost too softly for her to hear he replied. "I fucked up, Lu and I don't know how to fix it."

Lester had never really seen what it was about Tank's brash and over powering fiancée that appealed until a moment later when he watched Ranger turn and embrace Lula in a giant bear hug.

"She's something else, ain't she?" Tank said proudly as they both watched the interaction. A couple of minutes later the pair broke away and Lula put her palms either side of his face as she said something profound to Ranger. What ever it was made him nod his head and take a visible deep breath all the while looking her straight in the eye.

Moments later like smoke, he was gone and Lula wandered thoughtfully back to the very stunned Rangemen who had just been joined by Celia.

"What was all that about, Hun?" Tank asked curiously.

"He's still so in love with her, Tankie. He blames hisself…"

"And so he should." Lester added emphatically with a nod as he crossed his arms, scanning the area for his cousin.

"Who?! And who is he still in love with?" Celia piped up.

"Batman and Wonder Woman." Lula replied.

Celia looked non-plussed.

"Carlos and Steph." Tank translated.

"Ah!" Celia replied, now understanding who they were talking about. "Thought I saw him earlier. He still here? What happened to their marriage. I thought they were a sure thing after Scrog." she added.

Tank and Lester gave each other a knowing look. Tank nodded and Lester began his tail of woe…

o0o0o0o0o

Sitting down on the sofa, Steph tucked her daughter under her arm to hug her close to her side and kissed her hair gently before picking up her pocket book and pulling out a slightly dog eared c6 envelope.

"What ya got, Mama?" Charlie asked as she looked up at her Mom who was blinking back tears. "Don' cry, Mama! S'gonna be OK!" she added as she quickly knelt up and pulled her mother's face to her own with her little pudgy fingers.

"I know, Beautiful child." She replied as she gazed deeply into her daughter's innocent eyes. How could she tell her? Would she understand? Taking a deep breath she pulled Charlie onto her lap and tipped four photos carefully into her hand.

"Don't touch, Sweetie" She commanded softly. "I'll get you copies, but these are all I have left. If they get damaged I have no more."

Charlie made as if to protest. "Shh, just look." Steph commanded gently as she held the first one before her.

"This was your Daddy and I on our wedding day in Hawaii." She explained.

They were on a beautiful beach with a large expanse of white sand. There were palm trees in the distance and in the corner of the picture was part of a gazebo covered in white organza and decorated in white, gold and traces of pale pink Hawaiian Plumeria.

The man was holding her bridal style in his outstretched arms and pretending to drop her into the waves that lapped round his feet. His pant legs were rolled up to mid calf, the sleeves of his linen shirt were rolled up slightly, showing off his muscular forearms and his long dark hair was tied back off his face. He looked like he didn't have a care in the world.

Charlie touched his face gently. "so pretty." She said softly as she gazed at his playful countenance.

Steph's hair was dancing in the breeze and she was obviously screaming with laughter as she protested against the idle threat he was making. Her arms clasped round his broad shoulders as she fought to keep the pale blue, gauzy fabric of her dress dry.

"Mommy you so…happy." Charlie stated once she'd found the elusive word she needed. "Why you not looked like that now? You always so sad." She added as she knelt up again and patted her mother's cheek.

Steph leaned into her daughter's palm even as she closed her hand round it. "I'm not always sad. _You_ make me so very happy…" she added as she dropped the photos on the coffee table by her knees, a devious look and grin spreading across her face.

"Oh no! My fingers are all itchy, I need to tickle something!" she growled out playfully as she lunged at Charlie who was now giggling and scrabbling to escape. For several minutes, childish peals of laughter and squeals of delight hung in the air before they collapsed in an out of breath but happy heap back on the sofa.

o0o0o0o0o

Celia looked thoughtful as she considered what the trio had told her. Lester was the main narrator but Lula and Tank had their own information to impart as well.

"Holy fuck!" she eventually blurted softly out as she looked from face to face. "What a complete mess! No wonder my baby brother is even more closed off than ever. Are we totally sure no one knows where she went?" She added even as she had a lightbulb moment.

"Hang on…" she said, holding her index finger up. "Just gonna go grab someone…" she added before disappearing into the throng.

The others looked at each other in confusion then turned their heads as Celia returned, dragging Tio Lucas behind her.

"No so fast, young lady!" he gasped out "Where's the fire?" he added with a chortle before coming up short before the trio, any further laughter dying on his lips in confusion.

"Tio, you know Lester but can I introduce you to Tank and Lula?" she asked rhetorically.

They both said hello but before they asked any questions as to why he'd been dragged over, Celia asked them to repeat what they'd just told her.

One they'd finished, Celia looked at her uncle again. "So, Tio, you know something, don't you?" she asked for the second time in 24 hours...

**o0o0o0o0o**

**Dun, dun derrr...**

**So what will Lucas say? Has he seen sworn to secrecy by his Mom?**

**All will be revealed**

**Soon...**

**(Insert evil laugh here)**


	12. Chapter 12

**I know, I know... I promised to give you all a weekly update but RL has kicked me big stylie! My laptop died and took ****every last bit**** of this story (and the other one I've been writing) with it. **

**As you can imagine I was gutted but you should have seen the hissy fit my Muse pulled. I had to watch helplessly as she stormed off, using rather crude hand and arm gestures in true Italian style.**

**Anyway, Ranger came and had a chat last week and explained that he needed to resolve this story so he could give Charlie a cuddle. I explained that he might not like the ending I had planned but he just gave me an 'I can kill you with my little finger in 50 different ways' stare. Needless to say I hunted down the muse asap and dragged her back kicking and screaming…**

**So, enough of my obvious insanity. Please find below the next instalment of Hello From the Other Side.**

**Please R&R – might help placate the muse…(and keep Ranger from killing me, gulp)**

O0o0o0o0o

Going back to the photos, Steph picked up a second one and showed it to Charlie. "This was taken when I still worked for my cousin. I used to hunt down and catch bad people. It was a bit like playing hide and seek." She explained in a way that her daughter would understand.

Charlie pulled in close and studied the picture. Ranger was leaning against his Porsche and Steph was by his side but at 90 degrees to him. He was obviously concerned and looking deeply into her eyes while saying something and tucking a curl behind one ear. There were people milling about and there was some sort of chaos going on.

"Mommy, wos dat?" she asked pointing to a ton of thick grey smoke that was billowing out behind them.

"Oh? That's just one of my cars. I'd just captured one of the bad people on my list and his brother didn't like what I'd caught him so decided to set fire to my car." What she didn't mention was the Molotov cocktail Jonty Bates had lobbed into the car while she was cuffing his baby brother that nearly took all three of them out.

It had been a very close call and it was the catalyst for her final and lasting split from Morelli. Only a couple of minutes before the photo was taken he'd arrived at the scene and stormed over and asked her what the hell she'd been playing at. Just as he'd started his tirade Ranger drove up and as he got out of his car he realised that Joe was about to go completely ballistic so had waded in and told him to cool his jets. Insults were traded, hand gestures were made and Morelli and Ranger threw punches which led to Big Dog and Tank pulling Ranger away before he could kill the cop who was already sporting a couple of impressive bruises and a bloodied nose. Ranger on the other hand wasn't even mildly out of breath and looked as immaculate as usual.

Four months later Ranger asked her out on their first real date…

"Where Daddy now?" Charlie asked as she studied his handsome face and the concern written all over it. Well, Steph could see it in every part of his frame and the look in his eyes.

"Hmm, Baby. What was that?" Steph asked, lost in the memories that the picture conjured up.

"Where's my Daddy?" she asked again.

o0o0o0o0o

Lucas blinked as he schooled his face to hide the surprise he felt. Damn, what should he do?

Delfia had filled him in on her conversation with and the promise she'd made to Stephanie. Should he divulge all that he knew despite the reassurance his mother had given her that they'd not tell anyone what they knew? Added to that, she was still in a very vulnerable place and nowhere near ready to be found?

Or did he kid on he knew nothing and try to blag his way out of it?

Mentally crossing his fingers he replied "The girl in the photo looked a bit like a teacher I met the other day. She was much slimmer, a bit too thin really, but she had blue eyes and curly hair."

"Where is she now?" Lula asked.

"No idea." he replied as nonchalantly as he could. "I was catching up with one of the organisers of this year's North Pole Express Show and asking him how things were going when a bunch of kids and their teachers came past. I don't think they were local as I didn't recognise their accents. The only reason she stood out was because one of the students spilled their drink over her and she shrieked about how cold it was."

Moments later Mama Manoso shimmied her way over to them, a big smile on her face and a glass in her hand. Grabbing Lucas by his elbow, completely oblivious to the tension surrounding the small group, she towed him off to speak to another cousin who'd flown in especially from Ireland. He didn't need much persuading to go and the relief was written all over his face.

Tank looked thoughtful for a moment as he watched the retreating figures. "Anybody believe any of the horse shit he was sellin'?" he asked casually as he stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jeans.

"Nope. Not a word." Celia stated neutrally.

"What total bull _shit_!" Lula added softly but with a lot more force.

"Utter baloney. He seriously needs lessons…" Added Lester with a shake of his head and a wry grin.

"So what are we going to do about it?" Tank asked.

"Damned if I know." Celia stated with a sigh, which just about summed it up for everybody else as well.

o0o0o0o0o

Steph blinked at the simple question, not anticipating that Charlie would ask it or want an answer. Her inner self snorted in derision. Charlie was a perfect blend of the both of them – calculating, observant and nosey as hell. Why would she _not_ ask? Her inner voice questioned.

After a few moments she took a deep sigh "Well, you know how the princess and prince live happily ever after in your books?"

Charlie nodded, squeezing Bunbun as she tucked her head sideways down onto his and looked up at her mother with huge, innocent eyes.

"Well unfortunately they don't always live happily ever after. Sometimes an evil witch casts a spell so nasty that it can't ever be broken and the princess runs away because her prince forgets that he's still in love with her."

"S'ok." Charlie said with a confident look. "We kill the witch and the spell be broked."

"It's not as simple as that, Sweetie."

"Duh! T'is Mommy! The witch don't know _you_ still love Daddy. We kills her and he remember." She added emphatically with a nod of her head.

"Sweetie, I promise it's not that simple and we can't go around killing people because we don't like them." she replied with a soft laugh.

"Why not?" Charlie countered back, her brows furrowed in confusion.

Steph nearly laughed again at her daughter's so simplistic and innocent take on life. Cupping her daughter's face she smiled down at her.

"I love you so much, Sweetie. You know that, right?" she added.

"I know Mommy but I wants to see Daddy as well. I wants him to smile at me like he did in Hawiwi wiv you." She added, stunning Steph with how much it hurt to hear those words.

Steph felt as if someone had winded her with a baseball bat, while stabbing her through the heart repeatedly with a large knife. She couldn't… she wouldn't… Jeanne Ellen Burrows probably had Carlos so under her spell that she'd never let him go. Besides, they'd never discussed it but he probably never wanted any more children. He already had Julie and she'd just assumed that that was enough as far as he was concerned.

How could she explain to him that they'd created another life? How would he react to the knowledge that she'd deprived him of the right to choose to accept their daughter into his life or not?

She'd always tried to make it so that her daughter never wanted for anything and knew she was well loved. Until now she'd always assumed she would be enough for Charlie but it seemed that since meeting Delfia and Lucas everything she did was turning into a catalyst for change...

"I'm sorry, Sweetie. I don't think that's gonna happen." She replied sadly. "Daddy loves someone else now so he won't want to see me."

"What 'bout me?" Charlie said softly.

"Come here, Sweetie." Steph commanded gently as tears threatened to fall. She had always known that having this conversation about Charlie's roots was going to be hard, but she never imagined just how difficult it would be. Trying to tell an innocent child that her father probably wasn't interested in getting to know her was heart wrenching.

Charlie was softly crying so Steph rocked them both back and forth and stroked her soft curls. "Oh Baby. It's going to be OK" she crooned softly as she held her precious daughter "It's ok, Mommy's here…"

Eventually her daughter's tears slowed then stopped altogether and she looked up at her Mom with eyes that seemed so old all of a sudden. "I know Daddy lubs you Mommy." She stated calmly "We just needs to find him so he can tell you. Pwomis. Find my Daddy so he can lub me too. Pease."

Gulping loudly she looked down. How could she deny this tiny scrap of humanity anything. "I'll try." She replied in a wobbly voice as she pulled her back in for a comforting hug. She just wasn't sure who was comforting who.

Tucking Charlie up in bed later, Steph looked at her daughter's innocent little face.

"You pwomis, Mommy?" she asked for the millionth time.

"I pinky pwomis, I mean promise." She replied, hooking their little fingers together much as she'd done with Delfia.

Backing out of the room she knew she had some thinking and planning to do, with Delfia and Lucas' help. She was not naive enough to think that the Garcia's hadn't discussed her past by now. She just hoped Lucas would agree to keep her secret a bit longer. At least until she figured out what to do.

o0o0o0o0o

**So there we have it. Things are moving forward. **

**Maybe...**

**I have scoped out the rest of the chapters again and am attempting to put some flesh on the bones so please bear with me.**

**Bl**dy technology. Gah!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Happy New Year to you all. I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and had the chance to hook up with friends and family over the holidays.**

**I'm so sorry I haven't posted before now but I dropped my glasses down a gap between some grills (the gap shouldn't have been there) and lost them into the tanks and filters of the swimming pool I was teaching at. I'm still waiting for my boss to get his ass in gear and confirm whether the company is prepared to pay for replacements (I live in England and litigation isn't quite so hot over here) so have been making do with a pair with an ****old prescription in them plus a cheap ready readers. Long n short I've had loads of head aches so reading and writing have not been so easy.**

**Anyway, latest excuse over, I hope you like this chapter - it's quite something...**

**Might be a couple of weeks before I can write again as I wait for my boss to extract his digit and I can get new glasses.**

**A big mwa to you all **

**Cheers**

**Sarah xoxox**

**o0o0o0o0o **

The next morning broke wearily at Casa Velez. Despite the caterers clearing up after all the guests had left the majority of the space was still home to tables and chairs, two marquees, a dance floor and various pieces of staging equipment.

Thanks to Lester, Ana's shrug was draped lazily over a bench. Luckily though it was the only bit of clothing they'd left lying around - the rest was festooned haphazardly round the hotel room they were currently sharing.

Rolling over he kissed her naked shoulder and nuzzled into her hair, grinning like the Cheshire Cat as his ministrations woke her up. She moaned and stretched the kinks out of her long limbs as he continued to press feather like kisses over the skin he could reach from his position behind her.

"Morning Gorgeous." He schmoozed out happily as his hands began to wander. It had taken him five years to get into her bed thanks in part to the army and her studies which had led to the long term game of cat and mouse that they'd both been playing.

Rolling over she smiled in response and kissed him fully on the lips "A girl could get used to this, Les." She murmured sleepily "But unfortunately we both have somewhere to be." She added as she gently but forcefully pushed him away.

Les pouted and gave her his best sad puppy dog face, causing her to giggle.

"Don't worry, Stud Muffin. I'll be back in your bed before you know it and I don't plan to leave any time soon." She smiled as she rolled out from between the rumpled sheets, stood up and ran the fingers of one hand down his arm before grabbing his talented fingers and giving them a squeeze. "We've wasted too much time already, don't you agree…"

Lester's face turned serious for a second as he nodded and gulped. Kneeling up, a twinkle in his eye, he grabbed both her hands and pulled them to his lips for a long, lingering and smouldering kiss. "Go, sweet siren, till we meet again." He added with a huge grin "I'll be waiting…"

Ana rolled her eyes and snort-giggled "You're incorrigible, Lester Horatio Santos. I'll see you this afternoon at the wedding. Then I'll be down in Miami to start work before you know it."

Les gave her a confused and surprised look.

"I've got a job at Rangeman. Didn't Ranger tell you? I'm going to be your Client Liaison Officer and Technical Assistant." She explained, putting air quotes round the job title.

Lester's heart clenched. The only other person who'd ever held that position was Steph. After she'd gone the job had been split up between some of the men.

"You ok, Les?" Ana asked as she looked at the clouded face in front of her.

"Hmmm? Sorry, I just… I just haven't heard that title in quite a while. Out of interest, when did you get the job? Ranger never mentioned anything about it or you to me." He explained as his thoughts moved a mile a minute. Did this mean his cousin was serious about finding Beautiful, about asking her back into not just his but all of their lives? He loved Steph like a sister and had missed her terribly. Perhaps he would one day be able to say all things he needed to make her understand how much she was loved and admired and not just by him. The rest of the Core team and _all_ of the Merry Men who knew her missed her too.

"Last night just before he took off. He was asking me what I was going to do now that I've finished college. I told him about my specialising in psychology and innovation and after I'd described what I wanted to do now that I've graduated, he offered me a job. I've got to go and meet with him over brunch tomorrow to finalise everything." She looked at him carefully, biting her lip nervously before taking a deep breath and continuing "I hope that's ok Les and won't affect our potential relationship? I really, _really_ like you, you know."

Les nodded thoughtfully then climbed out of bed. Before she could react he scooped her up in his arms and carried her squirming and giggling into the bathroom, effectively breaking the tension and relaxing them both.

"In you get." He commanded gently as he swatted her behind playfully, making a bright slapping sound.

"Ouch!" she giggled jokingly as she wriggled out of his grasp "Are you going to join me, Santos?" she replied as she raised one eyebrow and gave him a smouldering look "I'm good in the shower…"

"Temptress…" he replied with a wolfish grin. "...lead the way." He added as he extended his hand towards her so that she could pull him in behind her.

o0o0o0o0o

"Can't believe this day is fi'nly here, my big hunk of love!" Lula gushed down the phone to her husband to be from the honeymoon suite in the hotel the wedding was taking place in. Gazing out of the window at the staff who were setting up and decorating the gazebo they would be married in, she played with the edge of the sumptuous deep gold curtain and smiled.

"Lulabelle, I can't wait to show you where we're gonna honeymoon. You're gonna lurve it. That's after tonight…" he added suggestively as he smiled into the phone and looked down on the action in the same gardens."

Almost simultaneously their doorbells rang. "Gotta go!" Lula said as she whipped her head round and listened to the giggles on the other side of the door.

"Me to!" Tank replied as he strode over to the door and opened it to find Lester and Ranger on the other side.

"I'll be the honey walking down tha aisle to you." She said as she opened the door to find Connie and Sally Sweet on the other side with bottles of champagne in their hands.

"I'll be the one waitin'."

o0o0o0o0o

"Will you Pierre Laurent Sherman take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife to live together in holy matrimony? Will you love her, comfort her and keep her in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others be faithful to her as long as you both shall live?"

"I will."

"Will you Talullah Rose Dupre take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband to live together in holy matrimony? Will you love him, comfort him and keep him in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others be faithful to him as long as you both shall live?"

"Damn right I will."

The congregation chuckled even as the pastor raised his eyebrows in shock and gave a little cough.

Ranger zoned out as he thought back to his own wedding, a lifetime ago. Back to when he was happy. Confident in his love for Steph. Convinced their love was a sure and forever thing…

"I Pierre Laurent take yo Talullah Rose to be my wife. I promise to love, support and protect yous an cherish yo all the days of my life. I will always be honest and tell you when your outfit don't work wit yo hair and when you've got it spot on. I will support yo an remind yo of how yo inner n outer beauty light up my world. This is my solumn vow."

"I Talullah Rose take yo Pierre Laurent to be my hunk o love husband. I promise to love ya, support and protect yous and cherish you all the days of my life. I will always be honest in how I feel and remember that together we's unstoppable. I will always do my very best to let you know how special and cherished you are, Baby. This is my solemn vow."

Ranger then stepped forward with the rings which he handed to the pastor before stepping back from the edge of the large white gazebo and settling back into parade rest again.

He took a deep breath and mentally sighed. What he wouldn't give to have a do-over. To still be married again but without the clusterfuck that was Jean Ellen and her toxic influence…

They were still married - in the eyes of the law anyway – but everything else was gone. He hoped she was happy and that he could see her one more time to tell her everything he needed her to hear. If nothing else it would give him closure and if she no longer wanted anything to do with him, he'd let her go…

Forever.

As the word formed in his head the remains of his battered heart stuttered and his resolve hardened. He would find her and - on bended knee if necessary - beg for forgiveness...

"May I now present Mr & Mrs Tank Sherman!"

Ranger was once more dragged back into the here and now and looked at Lula and Tank. What he wouldn't give to be in their shoes right now he thought as they set off, glowing with love and hope, back down the aisle. Reaching for Connie's hand and stepping behind the couple, he followed dutifully along behind.

o0o0o0o0o

Monday morning dawned cheerfully and brightly but Steph's thoughts were stuck in a loop. She'd promised Charlie that they would look for her father. She'd alluded to the fact that finding Ranger might be a tall order and Charlie had accepted the lie but insist that at least they try.

She snorted. Finding Ranger was going to be easy.

Rangeman probably still operated out of Trenton, Boston and Miami. Hell, he probably had a few more offices by now plus she knew his old mobile number off by heart. After all, she'd dialled it so many times that it was branded onto her brain. She snorted – he'd probably changed it once she'd left. At _her_ insistence.

Phone numbers aside, finding him was not going to be a problem. Talking to him. Now _that_ was going to be the problem.

Picking up the phone she automatically dialled his number, but as usual she chickened out and bailed immediately after she'd pressed the little green button. It didn't even have a chance to ring out.

Putting her phone back down on the night stand she climbed quietly out of bed so as not to disturb Charlie who had snuck into the big bed at some point during the night then set off downstairs to do a quick tidy up before Delfia returned.

o0o0o0o0o

Delfia smiled at her son and daughter-in-law as she waved them off from her porch. Quickly opening the door with her key, she tiptoed inside so as not to wake her guests. Actually she was hoping and praying that she still _had_ guests.

Toeing her shoes off quickly, she wandered further into the house smiling as she looked round to see evidence of a young woman and her tiny daughter who were obviously still living in her home.

Leaving her case in the hallway she wandered into the snug where she spotted a few photos lying on the coffee table. Picking them up she realised they were precious pictures of Stephanie's previous life.

Hearing movement behind her, she turned to see Steph pad in, her arms wrapped round her torso and her wary face filled with sadness.

"Yep, that was us." She whispered quietly. "I have no idea what I did to deserve what followed, but masochist that I am I still love him you know? Stupid really, isn't it?"

"No, Sweetie. I completely understand what it is not to be able to let go of a loved one."

Steph nodded in understanding.

"Tell me about him. Tell me about the man you married." Delfia asked and motioned to the couch where they both sat down and began to look through the photos.

o0o0o0o0o

Ranger strode up to the front of the building at 08.40 hours Monday morning and slipped silently through the automatic doors. Tipping his head at Freddy who was manning the reception desk he stopped to mention that a new Client Liaison Officer and Technical Assistant called Ana Bright would be arriving at 11.30 and to call him as soon as she arrived.

Freddy nodded in acknowledgement. "How did the wedding go Boss? Any gossip?" he asked, hoping Manoso would see the funny side, plus he was bored so this was an amusing way to pass the time.

Ranger raised an eyebrow. "Contrary to popular belief, I'm no good at gossiping. You need Santos for that." He added with the beginnings of a smile tipping up at the edges of his mouth.

"Good to know, Sir." Freddy said, the a nod of his head.

"But to answer your question, Tank and Lula had a great day and the celebrating went on into the early hours. At a guess, I reckon they'll be headed off on their honeymoon by lunch time." He continued, having looked down briefly at his watch. "Should give their hangovers a chance to recover." He added with a grin before heading to the door at the back of the room.

Within minutes he'd reached his desk on 5, via the stairs obviously, and moments later was perched on the edge of his desk, looking out of the window thinking of the events of the weekend as his slightly elevated breathing returned to normal.

Picking up the landline phone he dialled Hector. (**All Spanish is in italics**)

"_Hello Boss_." Hector said from deep within the bowels of the Trenton building. "How w_as the wedding_?"

"_The best. Tank and Lula are good for each other. Any news_?"

Hector thought for a moment before replying. Ranger, for all his faults, was still a man deeply in love with his Angelita. _"I think so, yes. I have found her_." He said once he'd weighed up the pros and cons of letting him know.

"_Seriously?! OK… wow!"_ The news though wonderful was so not expected that Ranger took a few nanoseconds to process it. "_Is she OK? How's she doing? Is she…happy?"_ He pressed as he sank into his chair and rolled it round to face the window. He would rather people didn't know what he was thinking and knew that even if someone at that moment was to offer him a million bucks, he still would not be able to keep his famous blank face in place right now.

"_Woah! Hold your horses, Boss!" _ Hector chuckled out. He could hear the excitement in Ranger's voice and had never felt happier to pass on information on a missing person before.

"_She's OK and with good people but Boss, she has no clue that we've found her_." He explained gently. "_Looking at her situation I think she needs time. She's been in a dark place but has finally got her feet planted under her."_

"_Can you tell me more?" _He asked, desperate for any information he could get. "_How much time do you think?"_

"_She always liked your hair long so I'd give her until it reaches you shoulders again."_

"_So, about 6 months then…"_

"_Yeah, that would work."_

"_Gotta go, Hector, other phone is ringing. Keep me informed." _He commanded gently.

Reaching onto the back of his belt, he pulled his cell phone out and nearly dropped it when he saw the number. "Babe?" he asked breathlessly.

"Are you my Daddy?" a little voice at the other end asked.

o0o0o0o0o

**Told you this chapter was a doozie! Thanks to all those still following me and a special thanks to trhodes9, daxandpat and baileygirl12 who checked up on me and to remind me that you're all still out there.**

**x0x0x0x**


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